Food security, Nutrition and Peace · 6 Food security, nutrition and peace have multiple and complex linkages. ... The following briefers introduced the theme: • Mr. José Graziano

Food security,Nutritionand PeacePROCEEDINGS OF THEUNITED NATIONS SECURITYCOUNCIL MEETING

New York, 29 March 2016


UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL MEETING

Food security, Nutritionand Peace

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United NationsRome 2016

United Nations Security Council | Statements

STATEMENTS DELIVERED BY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND OTHERS:

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ISBN 978-92-5-109240-8

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United Nations Security Council

Foreword …………………………… 6

Concept note ……………………… 8

Opening remarks by the co-chairs ... 12

Angola …………………………… 12

Spain ……………………………… 13

Statements delivered by the briefers ………………………… 17

José Graziano da Silva …………… 17

Sarah Cliffe ……………………… 21

Sakiko Fukuda-Parr ……………… 23

Statements delivered by Council members and others ……………… 26

Ukraine …………………………… 26

Japan ……………………………… 28

Uruguay …………………………… 30

United States of America ………… 32

New Zealand ……………………… 35

Russian Federation ……………… 37

Egypt ……………………………… 39

France …………………………… 41

Senegal …………………………… 47

United Kingdom ………………… 51

Malaysia …………………………… 52

Venezuela ………………………… 54

Angola …………………………… 56

Italy ……………………………… 58

Germany ………………………… 60

Turkey …………………………… 62

Brazil ……………………………… 64

Sweden …………………………… 66

Kazakhstan ……………………… 68

Palau ……………………………… 70

The Netherlands ………………… 72

African Union …………………… 74

World Food Programme (WFP) … 76

*Note: Statements are presented in the order in which they were delivered. Statements in original language are incorporated in this book.

CONTENTS

Meeting on Food Security, Nutrition and Peace

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Food security, nutrition and peace have multiple and complex linkages. To better understand their different connections, including food security and nutrition as factors that contribute to the prevention of conflict and to the creation of conditions that will lead to post-conflict stability, the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Angola to the United Nations and the Permanent Mission of Spain to the United Nations convened on 29 March 2016 a United Nations Security Council Arria-formula meeting on food, nutrition and peace.

The Arria-formula allowed for an informal and fruitful conversation on the topic. The Permanent Missions of Angola and Spain would like to thank all participants in the Arria-formula meeting, as well as the briefers Mr. José Graziano da Siva, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, Ms. Sarah Cliffe, Director for the New York University Centre for International Cooperation, and Ms. Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, Professor of the International Affairs Program at the New School, that kicked off that conversation.

The interventions by the briefers set the stage for the Arria-formula meeting. The FAO Director-General opened by providing a broad overview on the topic followed by concrete examples illustrating the links between food insecurity and conflict, noting issues that need to be addressed moving forward. Briefer Sarah Cliffe spoke on conflict-food insecurity linkages from an academic perspective and suggested policies to address the issue, while Sakiko Fukuda-Parr focused on food security as a dimension of human security and on the links between economic-social policies and conflict.

FOREWORD


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Ambassador Ismael Gaspar MartinsPermanent Representative of Angola to the United Nations

Ambassador Román OyarzunPermanent Representative of Spain to the United Nations

This publication prepared by FAO offers the opportunity to further reflect on this issue. We hope it will inspire the international community to continue exploring the connections between food, nutrition and peace and contribute to highlight the importance of addressing food security and nutrition in a coherent and systemic manner by the UN system, including the Security Council when appropriate.

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1. ContextEnding hunger is a global endeavor. The United Nations Secretary-General’s Zero Hunger Challenge recognizes that eliminating hunger will make a significant contribution to peace and stability and to the reduction of poverty. There is a multidimensional and complex relationship between peace, conflict and food security. Conflict directly affects food security, while food insecurity has both direct and indirect effects on sustainable development, and international peace and security.

Trends in violent conflict, forced displacement, intensified resources stress, global food prices and climate change bring new risks and uncertainties and point to the importance of innovative and practical solutions that support both peace and food security.

Food security and nutrition and food-security related interventions can contribute to conflict prevention and conflict mitigation by building and enhancing social cohesion, addressing root causes or drivers of conflict, and by contributing to the legitimacy of, and trust in, governments. Food security can support peace-building efforts and peace-building can reinforce food security.

Efforts to revive the agricultural sector and trade, and improve food security, have had positive effects on the sustainability of peace. The creation of rural jobs, particularly for youth, and the enhancement of livelihoods in the agricultural sector help reduce the risk of, and relapse into violence.

Violent conflicts affect the ability to produce, trade and access food, including by inhibiting farming, damaging infrastructure and destroying markets. In this context, women’s access to food becomes particularly difficult due to the exacerbation of gender-based violence.

Furthermore, access to food has been increasingly used in conflict situations as a deliberate tactic of war, expanding human suffering and violating international Humanitarian Law.

Loss of lives, injuries, the lifelong impact of malnutrition, displacement, theft or destruction of farming and productive assets, and damage to infrastructure, all have impacts well beyond the

CONCEPT NOTE

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duration of violence itself. It has an especially potent and long-lasting effect on children, who may suffer irreversible harm to their cognitive and physical capacities if their nutrition is compromised before the age of two years.

Peace is a prerequisite for the eradication of hunger, however, it is frequently fragile, and post-conflict governance structures are often weak, hunger can undermine peace and lead to renewed violence by exacerbating existing tensions and grievances.

Food security is key in the Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration programs to ensure the lasting reintegration of former combatants into civilian life and peacetime livelihoods to avoid the threat that they will return to wartime methods for acquiring food.

2. Why a UN Security Council meeting on Food Security, Nutrition and Peace?Combating food insecurity and eliminating hunger requires a multifaceted and collaborative response from numerous stakeholders. Understanding what role the Security Council (SC) and the United Nations system as a whole can play in working with national governments to address these challenges is important in preventing future conflicts and contributing to international peace and security.

It is also pertinent for the members of the SC to reflect on how national governments can access the support they need to improve food security, to help mitigate the potential risks of conflict and contribute to maintaining international peace and security.

Outcomes and recommendations from recent UN system processes, including the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Report of the High-Level Panel on the Review of Peace Operations, and the review of the UN Peace-Building Architecture, all share a common message on the interrelationship between peace, security and development.


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There is increasing evidence that when implemented appropriately, well-timed food security related interventions can build resilience to conflict not only by assisting countries and people to cope with and recover from conflict, but also by contributing to conflict prevention and mitigation, while more broadly supporting sustainable development.

Famine and starvation create the conditions for the spread of violent extremism around the world, which can be conducive to terrorism. Therefore food security can undercut the recruiting base and prevent the spread of radicalism in support to the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy.

An event on this topic is also pertinent to member countries and other actors in preparation for the World Humanitarian Summit (WHS) in Istanbul in May 2016. In bringing this topic, member states can reaffirm their commitments to the Framework for Action for Food Security and Nutrition in Protracted Crises (FFA), adopted in October 2015 during the 42nd session of the UN Committee for World Food Security (CFS), which recognizes the need to contribute to anticipate crisis, overcome silo approaches, focus on vulnerable populations and empower gender in order to contribute to peaceful and inclusive communities.

3. Objective of the eventThe objective was to discuss the interlinkages between food security and peace in the context of sustainable development, including:

a) The short, medium and long-term consequences of conflict on food security.

b) How food security can contribute to the prevention of conflicts while improving peace, stability and security.

c) The importance of reflecting “food security” in coherent systemic approaches to support international peace and security.

The following briefers introduced the theme:

• Mr. José Graziano da Silva, Director of FAO.

• Ms. Sakiko Fukuda-Parr, Economist formerly of the WB and UNPD, currently teaching at The New School.

• Ms. Sarah Cliffe, Director of New York University’s Center on International Cooperation



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The meeting was convened under the "Arria Formula", a working method introduced a quarter of a century ago that has been increasingly used to discuss issues related to peace and development and which also allows Council members to take advantage of expertise and information provided by outsiders.

It was co-chaired by Ambassador Ismael Gaspar Martins, Permanent Representative of Angola to the United Nations and Ambassador Román Oyarzun Marchesi, Permanent Representative of Spain to the United Nations.

t From top to bottom: FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva; Ambassador Ismael Gaspar Martins, Permanent Representative of Angola to the United Nations; and Ambassador Román Oyarzun Marchesi, Permanent Representative of Spain to the United Nations. ©FAO/Sudeshna Chowdhury.

p General view of the UN Security Council meeting. ©FAO/Sudeshna Chowdhury.

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AngolaIsmael A. Gaspar Martins Ambassador, Permanent Representative of the Republic of Angola to the United Nations

I’d like to welcome of course the members of the Council and all the other members, and especially welcome the Director-General of FAO who is with us here this morning for this Arria Formula to deal with a problem which I think we have not been covering sufficiently at the level of the Security Council. It is food security and nutrition, and I see that it is a topic which is considered to be important for our work not just in the Council, but for the entire family of the United Nations. I would like thus to start by saying that when we started discussing the need for a topic such as an Arria Formula we felt that the elimination of hunger is also an act of conflict prevention. If you have people who are well fed, humanitarian security is higher, therefore it

is a topic that I think deserves attention by the Security Council. FAO has been making a very remarkable contribution to this and having both the Director-General and the briefers we have invited here to further elaborate on this topic, it is something that we at the level of the Council can do. The Ambassador of Spain and myself, are going to co-chair this meeting and without further ado I think we should immediately go into this. We only have two hours to work on this, so I think what I will do to begin is to introduce Mr. José Graziano da Silva, the Director General of FAO, followed by the two briefers, Ms Sarah Cliffe and Ms Sakiko Fukuda. But before I do that, I will give the floor to Ambassador Román of Spain to say a few words. ■


OPENING REMARKS BY THE CO-CHAIRS

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“Peace begins in the countryside; there will be no peace without food security, and there will be no food security without peace.” These words, uttered just a few short weeks ago by the Director-General of FAO, whom we are honoured to have with us today, show very clearly how pertinent this matter is.

This meeting will allow the Security Council to better understand the interaction between food security and global safety. The relationship between food security and peace is a two-sided coin.

On the one hand, there is a correlation between countries’ exposure to conflicts and the deterioration in their food security. Almost all conflicts impact, in particular, on rural areas and their populations. Conflicts

disturb food production, hamper agriculture, and interrupt communication pathways along which food is exchanged or humanitarian aid is transported. This very often happens in areas that have already been affected by natural disasters, drought, degradation of the land, such phenomena, the intensity and frequency of which are aggravated by the pernicious effects of climate change.

On the other hand, lack of food security, lack of access to food, or increases in food prices are profound causes of conflicts, as hunger, poverty and injustice are the social basis of violence.

Furthermore, restricting access to food is increasingly used as a tactic of war, which is a clear violation of international humanitarian law. This contributes to exacerbating and u

Román Oyarzun Marchesi Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Spain to the United Nations

Spain


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u significantly prolonging situations of armed conflict, and blocking the re-establishment of peace and international safety.

The impact of conflicts on food security often continues long after the violence has decreased or disappeared, something that is particularly evident when those who are affected are children.

It should also be noted that women’s access to food is especially complicated within the context of violent conflicts, due to the increase in sexual and similar types of violence that occur in these situations.

Food security is key in programmes of disarmament, demobilization and re-integration, and in helping former combatants re-integrate in a lasting way into civil life, and avoiding their resorting to war tactics in order to get food. We must keep this in mind when we suggest the support of the Security Council and the Peacebuilding Commission for post-conflict recovery plans.

Famine and exhaustion caused by lack of nourishment create conditions that favour the expansion of violent extremism, which can lead to terrorism. This is why we believe

that working to ensure food security can help the objectives of the United Nations Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy; by contributing to threatening the ability of terrorist groups to recruit new members, and by slowing the expansion of radicalism at the global level.

Successfully achieving the objective of eradicating hunger in order to attain food security, established in Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development, will play a key role in obtaining global peace and safety.

The fight against hunger and for food security has been, is, and will continue to be a priority of Spain’s cooperation efforts. Please allow me to highlight the role of the logistical foundation of the United Nations’ World Food Program (WFP), established in the Canary Islands, from where 75 000 tons of humanitarian aid per year is mobilized, fundamentally in the form of food aid.

Spain advocates for adopting a multi-disciplinary focus to fight the threats that place international stability at risk. For this we grant special importance to the need to ensure the coherence of the United Nations system in handling this matter, including the appropriate use of all instruments within our reach. ■

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“La paz empieza en el campo, no habrá paz sin seguridad alimentaria ni seguridad alimentaria sin paz”. Estas palabras, pronunciadas hace escasas semanas por el Director General de la FAO, con cuya presencia tenemos el honor de contar en el día de hoy, dan buena cuenta de la pertinencia de abordar esta cuestión.

Esta reunión permitirá que el Consejo de Seguridad tenga un mejor conocimiento sobre las interacciones existentes entre la seguridad alimentaria y la seguridad global. La relación entre seguridad alimentaria y paz es doble.

Por una parte hay una correlación demostrada entre la exposición de los países a conflictos y el deterioro de su seguridad alimentaria. Casi todos los conflictos afectan especialmente a las zonas rurales y a sus poblaciones. Perturban la producción de alimentos; impiden la agricultura; interrumpen las vías de comunicación por las que se realizan los intercambios de alimentos o se transporta el socorro humanitario. Con mucha frecuencia esto sucede en zonas ya de por si afectadas por desastres naturales, sequías, degradación de las tierras… fenómenos cuya intensidad y frecuencia están agravados por los perniciosos efectos del cambio climático.

Por otra parte, la inseguridad alimentaria, la falta de acceso a los alimentos o el aumento de sus precios actúan como causa profunda de los conflictos ya que el hambre, la pobreza y la injusticia constituyen la base social de la violencia.

Pero además, la restricción en el acceso a los alimentos es utilizada con cada vez mayor frecuencia como táctica de guerra en lo que constituyen claras violaciones del Derecho Internacional Humanitario. Este hecho contribuye a exacerbar y prolongar significativamente las situaciones de conflicto armado y obstaculizar el restablecimiento de la paz y la seguridad internacional.

El impacto de los conflictos en la seguridad alimentaria a menudo se prolonga mucho después de que la violencia haya disminuido o desaparecido, algo que resulta particularmente evidente cuando los afectados son niños.

También ha de destacarse que el acceso de las mujeres a la alimentación se hace especialmente complicado en contexto de conflictos violentos debido al aumento de casos de violencia sexual y de género que se produce en esas situaciones.

Podemos asegurar que la Seguridad Alimentaria es clave en los programas de u

Román Oyarzun Marchesi Embajador, Representante Permanente de España ante las Naciones Unidas


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u Desarme, Desmovilización y Reintegración para asegurar que los excombatientes puedan reincorporarse de una manera duradera en la vida civil evitando que recurran a tácticas de guerra para la consecución de alimentos. Debemos de tener en cuenta esto cuando planteamos el apoyo del Consejo de Seguridad y de la Comisión de Consolidación de la Paz a planes de recuperación postconflicto.

La hambruna y la inanición crean condiciones que favorecen la expansión del extremismo violento y pueden conducir al terrorismo. Por ello creemos que trabajar por asegurar la Seguridad Alimentaria puede apoyar los objetivos de la Estrategia Global de Naciones Unidas contra el Terrorismo, contribuyendo a socavar su capacidad de reclutar nuevos efectivos y a frenar la expansión del radicalismo a nivel mundial.

La exitosa consecución del objetivo de erradicar el hambre lograr la seguridad alimentaria establecido en la Agenda

2030 para el Desarrollo Sostenible tendrá un papel clave en favor de la Paz y de la Seguridad Global.

La lucha contra el hambre y por la seguridad alimentaria ha sido, es y seguirá siendo una prioridad de la Cooperación Española. En este sentido me permito destacar el papel de la base logística del Programa Mundial de Alimentos (PMA) de Naciones Unidas establecida en las Islas Canarias y desde donde se movilizan 75.000 toneladas de ayuda humanitaria al año, fundamentalmente en forma de ayuda alimentaria.

España aboga por adoptar un enfoque multidisciplinar para combatir las amenazas que ponen en riesgo la estabilidad internacional. Por ello le otorgamos una especial importancia a la necesidad de asegurar la coherencia del Sistema de las Naciones Unidas en el tratamiento esta cuestión, incluyendo el uso apropiado de todos los instrumentos existentes a nuestro alcance. ■

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I would like to thank the Governments of

Angola and Spain for this opportunity to

discuss the dynamic relationship between

food security, nutrition and peace.

This is the first time that FAO’s Director-

General is addressing the UN Security

Council, and I am honoured to be here.

FAO has long been concerned about the

impact of war on food security and on

how hunger can be one of the drivers of

instability and conflict.

At the same time, we know that actions to promote food security can help prevent a crisis, mitigate its impacts and promote post-crisis recovery and healing.

FAO was established in 1945. As the world emerged from World War II, our founders saw that FAO must play a vital role in the quest for peace.

They wrote, and I quote: “the Food and Agriculture Organization is born out of the need for peace as well as the need for freedom from want. The two are interdependent. u


STATEMENTS DELIVERED BY THE BRIEFERS

Director-General, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

José Graziano da Silva


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u Progress toward freedom from want is essential to lasting peace."

Seven decades after the creation of FAO, UN Member States reinforced this idea by adopting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, based on the premise that “there can be no sustainable development without peace and no peace without sustainable development”.

The link between food and peace underpinned the award of the 1949 Nobel Peace Prize to Lord Boyd Orr, FAO’s first Director-General. At that time, he wrote that, I quote: “Hunger is at the heart of the world’s troubles. Unless people are fed, the best treaties can come to nothing. Hungry people cannot be satisfied by anything but food.”

My own deep personal conviction is that there can be no food security without peace, and no lasting peace without food security.

Peace and food security are mutually reinforcing. We have often seen hunger recede when stability prevails, such as in post-conflict Angola and Nicaragua, post-genocide Rwanda and post-independence Timor-Leste.

Similarly, however, violence and hunger are often locked in vicious cycles in which one feeds on the other.

Conflicts are a key driver of protracted crises, where the prevalence of undernourishment is three times higher than in the rest of the developing world.

The Global Hunger Index of 2015, elaborated by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), notes that the countries with the highest levels of food insecurity are also those most affected by conflict.

Conflicts mostly affect rural areas and people, particularly women and children. Violent attacks on farming communities and the destruction of crops, livestock and markets undermine rural livelihoods and displace people from their homes.

Although the relationship between hunger and conflict are complex and non-linear, food insecurity is a factor that can contribute to the destabilization of societies and aggravates political instability.

Food protests contributed to the downfall of the government of Haiti in 2008. Food price rises coincided with protests during the Arab Spring of 2011.

In post-conflict situations, persistent high food insecurity can contribute to a resurgence of violence, as in the Central African Republic and Yemen.

Hunger that results from violence can generate further violence.

Food itself can become a weapon of war when it is stolen from civilians by fighters or deliberately withheld as a tactic, in the perverse logic of violence. This goes against International Humanitarian Law, but these strategies are still used.


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In South Sudan, some seven million people, over half of the population, are currently experiencing food insecurity in the context of continued violence. 2.8 million of them are in an acute situation.

If peace is not restored and assistance is not stepped up in South Sudan, the situation can deteriorate into famine.

Just five years ago, Somalia was hit by a famine that killed over 250 000 people, largely because of a failure on the part of the international community to respond in time to early warnings of impending disaster. Let us never again repeat such mistakes.

The recent high-level UN reviews related to peace and security urge the UN to keep pace with evolving challenges and threats to international security.

There is a clear recognition that preventing crises and sustaining peace are Charter-based responsibilities shared across the UN system.

The Secretary-General’s report for the World Humanitarian Summit “One Humanity: Shared Responsibility” also calls for active engagement in conflict prevention.

As we all know, prevention requires addressing the root causes of conflict, including hunger and food insecurity.

Conflict-sensitive approaches to reducing food insecurity, which take into consideration the specific triggers of the conflict, and pro-peace approaches to

increase food security are needed in a range of crises today.

In the Central African Republic, half of the population faces hunger. This is not only a threat to those who suffer, but to the stabilization process in the country.

In Syria, before the civil war started, agriculture employed half of the population. The sector has been seriously affected as farmers started fleeing their lands. Assisting farmers when it is safe for them to remain has been critical to prevent even more displacement and also to set the foundations for rebuilding Syria.

FAO is working with its partners to strengthen the food security and resilience of those that remain on their land in Syria, the vast majority of whom are women.

Agriculture also brings new life to shattered homes and communities. Supporting agriculture and rural livelihoods, can serve as a motivating rationale for bringing people together and to drive recovery.

Efforts to revive the agricultural sector and improve food security, including through social protection, have positive effects on the sustainability of peace. They are important “peace dividends”.

This is recognized, for example, by the Government of Colombia, which considers agriculture, rural development and food security as cornerstones of the peace process and of the social cohesion that must be built in the post-conflict phase. u


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u As I said at the beginning, the relationship between food security and peace, conflict and hunger has always been present in FAO´s work. But the invitation to brief you today has galvanized our internal reflection process.

FAO is developing a corporate peacebuilding policy to amplify our contribution to conflict prevention, and to support the establishment of peaceful, stable, and inclusive societies.

Implementing such a policy will require stronger engagement with governments and a wide range of peace-building, humanitarian and development actors.

We already work closely with the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the World Food Programme, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, and a wide range of other partners within and outside the UN System.

We welcome the challenge of strengthening and establishing more effective partnerships.

In conclusion, when wars have loomed large, we have looked to agriculture to sustain vulnerable communities and help restore post-crisis economies. These remain essential functions.

And where hunger threatens peace, we must contribute to mitigating that risk through conflict-sensitive food security approaches.

Where food security can be a force for stability, we have to look to food and agriculture as pathways to peace and security.

This is a great challenge, but one that we can meet together as we embark on achieving the 2030 Development Agenda.

Let me finish by quoting Mahatma Gandhi: “To a hungry man a piece of bread is the face of God”. ■


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What do we know about the links between food security, nutrition and peace? What makes countries resilient to these risks? And what does this mean for global policy development in future?

There are four points worth making on the links between food security, nutrition, other natural resource issues, and peace:

First, conflict of course has a deep impact on food security and nutrition – people living in conflict-affected countries are more than twice as likely to be malnourished as those in stable environments, and countries in prolonged conflict fall on average 20 percentage points behind in poverty reduction.

Second, there is some evidence that food insecurity can play a role in increasing conflict risk. In particular, food price shocks can increase vulnerabilities. Studies have found that rainfall shocks in 41 African countries significantly increased conflict

risks: a 5 percent decline in economic growth due to rainfall costs increased the risk of conflict the following year by half. Countries in the Sahel have been notably vulnerable to this type of risk.

However, current research does not yet indicate a clear link between climate change, food insecurity and conflict, except perhaps where rapidly deteriorating water availability cuts across existing tensions and weak institutions. But a series of interlinked problems – changing global patterns of consumption of energy and scarce resources, increasing demands for food imports (which draw on land, water, and energy inputs) can create pressure on fragile situations.

Food security – and food prices – are a highly political issue, being a very immediate and visible source of popular welfare or popular uncertainty. But their link to conflict (and the wider links between climate change and conflict) is indirect rather than direct. u

Director of the Center on International Cooperation, New York University (NYU)

Sarah Cliffe


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u What makes some countries more resilient than others?Many countries face food price or natural resource shocks without falling into conflict. Essentially, the two important factors in determining their resilience are:

First, whether food insecurity is combined with other stresses – issues such as unemployment, but most fundamentally issues such as political exclusion or human rights abuses. We sometimes read nowadays that the 2006-2009 drought was a factor in the Syrian conflict, by driving rural-urban migration that caused societal stresses. It may of course have been one factor amongst many but it would be too simplistic to suggest that it was the primary driver of the Syrian conflict.

Second, whether countries have strong enough institutions to fulfill a social compact with their citizens, providing help quickly to citizens affected by food insecurity, with or without international assistance. During the 2007-2008 food crisis, developing countries with low institutional strength experienced more food price protests than those with higher institutional strengths, and more than half these protests turned violent. This for example, is the difference in the events in Haiti versus those in Mexico or the Philippines where far greater institutional strength existed to deal with the food price shocks and protests did not spur deteriorating national security or widespread violence.

What are the implications for global policy?First, consider food security – and in particular food price volatility – as one of the structural risks that may merit inclusion in a better strategic risks analysis at the UN.

Second, help countries develop scalable social protection programs that can help citizens when food shocks occur. Good examples would be Ethiopia’s Productive Safety Net Program, which since 2005 has helped the rural poor resist shocks and create assets, increasing their resilience to chronic food security. More recently, the UN has helped countries surrounding Syria scale-up social safety net programs to assist both their own vulnerable citizens and refugees, such as the work WFP, UNHCR, UNDP and UNICEF have done in support of the Lebanese Government’s national poverty targeting and education programs.

Third, and relevant for the UN Security Council, make efforts to ensure that peace operations can complement the restoration of food security and livelihoods. This may mean ensuring that peace operations can protect civilian cultivation and principal local trade routes; it may mean helping governments assess the impact of internal and border security measures on agricultural producers and the consumers of basic foods.

Fourth, support structural measures designed to reduce the risks of exceptional price volatility in global food markets. ■


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I am deeply honoured by this opportunity to contribute to this discussion today. The Director-General and Ms. Cliffe have already elaborated on the complex links between food security and conflict. I will therefore focus on the human centered perspective and comment on two of the issues raised: food security as a dimension of human security and the effects of price hikes; and the importance of conflict sensitive social and economic policies in post conflict peacebuilding.

Food security as a dimension of human securityFood security is one of the essential dimensions of human security. Being able to obtain adequate, nutritious food is essential for individuals to lead lives to their potential with dignity and freedom, which is why food is also a human right. But of the many threats to human security – from diseases to natural disasters to unemployment and more - threats

to food security have particularly important links to conflict because they have strong political salience. There is a consistent finding in conflict analyses that food price hikes are a source of social unrest that can lead to serious political consequences. As politicians know well, skyrocketing prices of staples – like rice, sugar, cooking oil – provoke widespread protests, sometimes developing into riots. During the 2007/8 food crisis, 60 food riots took place in countries across the world.

These effects are particularly common in low-income countries because of the high proportion of household incomes that are spent on food. In countries of Asia and Africa, the average is generally over 50%, often over 75% as in Kenya and Pakistan. This compares with 10- 25% in Western Europe and North America.

Food protests and social unrest do not necessarily lead to armed insurgency, but u

Professor of International Affairs, The New School

Sakiko Fukuda-Parr

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u they have deeper implications for state legitimacy. Providing security is a core function of the state and this includes not only personal physical safety but also food security. It is a central element of the social contract between the state and the citizen. Price hikes provoke protests because citizens expect their government to ensure that they are able to meet their food needs adequately by purchase or production. They expect government to act if prices skyrocket to unaffordable levels or if supply shortages are created, or if crops fail. Indeed, Professor Amartya Sen’s celebrated work on famine showed that widespread famines of the kind that gripped India in colonial times do not occur in democracies because governments in power cannot afford to ignore the public pressure and demands that they take action.

When the state is unable to deliver on that social contract, the citizenry begins to lose faith, and state legitimacy is compromised. Scholars have argued that Emperor Haile Selasse’s overthrow was triggered by his government’s failure to respond to food shortages. Other examples include coups in Burkina Faso and Niger in the 1970s, ouster of the Prime Minister in Haiti in 2008, conflicts in the Horn of Africa from the 1970s, and the collapse of the Suharto regime in 1998 following the Asian financial crisis. Many also argue that the price hikes and volatility starting in 2007, peaking in 2010/11 were among the factors triggering the Arab Spring protests.

It is not hunger that triggers social unrest but rather anger with government inaction. Combined with other factors such as

horizontal inequalities this social unrest can contribute to violent conflict. This underscores the role of robust national food security policies as a conflict prevention measure and a necessary part of a coherent post-conflict peace-building strategy. This brings me to the second point about conflict sensitive economic and social policies.

Conflict sensitive food security policies in post-conflict peacebuilding.

One of the most widespread and devastating effects of conflict on people, particularly on the vulnerable, is the disruption of food systems. Apart from the deliberate use of food as a weapon of war – such as by hijacking or destroying crops – the violence leads families to migrate and abandon their lands, and a generalized breakdown in marketing, supply, and production systems. Rehabilitation of agricultural production and strengthening household food security is clearly a priority objective in post-conflict development to restore the livelihoods of the population. It is also an important strategy for preventing relapse into conflict and breaking the vicious cycle of conflict/food insecurity links.

A consistent lesson learned from the last decades of conflict analyses (reflected in the Committee on World Food Security guidelines) is the need for coherent, well coordinated humanitarian and development interventions to build resilient livelihoods and meet immediate humanitarian needs. This requires strengthening local food systems through supporting small-scale household agriculture and investing in improving


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their productivity. Empowering women as household decision makers and asset managers is particularly important as they are household food managers and are often primary producers as well. It also requires building national policies to be resilient to food price volatility. These objectives are often neglected priorities in post-conflict economic and social development strategies, undermined by other conflicting priorities.

Support to small-scale agriculture requires public investments in infrastructure, research, extension, credit and other support services. These are often neglected priorities that take second place to objectives such as rebuilding physical and social infrastructure, and incentivising foreign investments in natural resource exploitation. Macroeconomic policies can also be inconsistent with these objectives; most countries liberalized agriculture and withdrew state support during the 1980s and 90s, exposing domestic production to competition. In many cases, the liberalization was rapid and domestic production went into rapid decline. While trade openness has benefits, not least for accessing lower cost food supplies, domestic production capacity is an important measure of resilience in the face of volatile international markets. Trade policies and commitments to multilateral trade agreements can also be inconsistent with food price stabilization and management policies; price supports and ceilings can be considered potentially trade distorting under the WTO Agreement on Agriculture.

There is an important international dimension to conflict sensitive food security

policy. While price hikes in decades past were driven by local supply and demand, today’s market environment has shifted dramatically. International prices for cereals – rice, wheat and maize – are driven by a variety of factors outside of the food system. Food consumers compete with biofuels.

Financialization has brought cereals' markets into financial instruments. It was therefore not an accident that 2007/8 saw a triple crisis of food, fuel and financial markets since they are now inter-related. Climate change has put pressure on the productivity of tropical and less favoured environments – semi-arid zones, high altitudes, steep slopes. These global trends put increasing pressure on the small-scale producers who are the populations of the conflict-prone areas.

These are issues that are recognized in Sustainable Development Goal 2 that has set targets for increasing small-scale farm productivity (2.4), and addressing the issues of investment in support services (2a), trade distortions (2b), and price volatility in food commodity markets (2c). Standard national policy approaches may be ill-adapted to the conflict prevention priorities of post-conflict environments. Globally, the international community needs to address the issues of global market volatility.

To conclude, economic and social policies are both a part of the problem and a solution to conflict. Global efforts to address conflict require a coherent and coordinated approach with social and economic development agendas. ■


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STATEMENTS DELIVERED BY COUNCIL MEMBERS AND OTHERS

Ukraine

I would like to welcome the initiative of my colleagues from Angola and Spain to convene this Arria Formula meeting to address one of the essential aspects of maintaining international peace and security. It is a good opportunity to discuss in this broader format the links between peace, food security and conflict prevention policy at global and national levels.

In our opinion, it is extremely important that all Security Council members embrace opportunities presented by Arria Formula meetings to discuss subjects usually absent from the Council’s agenda.

Ukraine consistently advocated the nexus of peace and food security. My country has a tragic experience of being the victim of a genocidal crime against its people, when in 1932–33 an artificial famine – Holodomor –

was imposed on the Ukrainian people by the Soviet communist ruler Stalin.

We believe that the international community must exert all possible efforts – both at international and national levels – to prevent attempts to use hunger and starvation as a method of oppression, or an element of the hybrid warfare or state policy.

Ukraine has for many years cooperated with the World Food Programme as a reliable and contributing partner. However, recently my country has started to face a different type of problem.

As a result of the Russian aggression, which began with illegal occupation of the Crimean peninsula and is now continuing with the ongoing military invasion in the Donbas, my country has to address the needs of a large portion of our population displaced as a



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result of the conflict. Now we have 1.6 million IDPs, and all these people need humanitarian aid, including food.

An even higher number of people (around 2.3 million) residing in certain areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions that are now under de facto Russian control do not have adequate access to nutrition. These facts speak volumes about the intrinsic links between food security and peace. Where there is no peace, people are immediately exposed to the risks of food insecurity, and sometimes starvation and hunger. Russian supported terrorists must stop blocking the operation of international humanitarian organizations in the territories under their control.

We believe that long-term inter-linkages between food security and conflicts should be addressed at global and national levels. Remnants of war, such as landmines and other unexploded devices, continue to

put civilian lives at risk, hampering their peacetime activities, including agricultural works. In this regard, a conducive and equitable international assistance with full understanding of local conditions will be crucial in achieving development objectives and eradicating the threat of hunger.

An equally important lesson to be drawn is the longer the Council remains idle on the matter of resolution of each and every conflict, the longer local populations will suffer from all kinds of hardships, including inadequate access to food.

Having said this, I call on my Council colleagues to recall today’s discussion whenever there is a hint of temptation to delay consideration of a conflict situation, to delegate responsibility somewhere else or to simply ignore the problem under any pretext (“big power rivalries”, “bilateral nature of a conflict”, misplaced “sovereignty concerns”, etc.). ■


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Japan

At the outset, the Japanese Delegation would like to express its appreciation to the Permanent Missions of Angola and Spain for convening this meeting. We are grateful to Mr. José Graziano da Silva, Director-General of FAO, and other distinguished panelists for shedding light on food security, nutrition and peace.

Without peace and stability, the impact of malnutrition, forced displacement, theft or destruction of farming and productive assets and damage to infrastructure, all have serious negative impacts on food security. According to FAO, the proportion of undernourished people living in countries in conflict and protracted crises is almost three times higher than that in other developing countries.

On the other hand, food insecurity increases the risk of conflict. According to FAO, the post-conflict countries with high food insecurity are 40% more likely to relapse into conflict within a 10-year timespan.

Agriculture accounts for two-thirds of employment and one-third of GDP in countries in protracted crises, so we must

tackle the issue of increasing food security by 1) having food aid ready in an emergency and as a primary measure; 2) restoring and improving agricultural infrastructure and giving technical assistance to enhance production in post-conflict areas; and 3) building the value chain towards more robust growth in rural areas.

I would like to touch upon one such example. Last July, the Japanese government, in collaboration with FAO, launched the Project for Assistance to the Recovery and Development of the Agricultural Economy in Federally Administered Tribal Areas in Pakistan.

This area is one of the most underdeveloped in Pakistan and there are a great number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) from this area, since the occupation of anti-governmental forces. Agricultural infrastructure has also been severely damaged. In order for IDPs to return to the area, it is essential to restore and improve the agricultural infrastructure.

In this connection, the G7 summit at Elmau last year expressed the G7’s determination to


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improve food security and nutrition. As the chair of the G7 Summit, Japan will take the initiative to achieve the goals at Elmau.

Also, in August, the TICAD VI summit meeting – a partnership with African countries and Japan along with other co-organizers, the United Nations, the World Bank, UNDP and AUC – will be held in Kenya, and for the first time on the African continent. Promoting social stability including the response to food security is an important pillar in TICAD and we will help

with the efforts of African countries for their development based on African ownership and partnership.

In closing, Japan will hold an open debate at the Security Council on peacebuilding in Africa in July as the chair for the month. The discussion today will be an important input to that debate. In order to realize “No one is left behind”, the principle of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, we will work to address peace-building as well as enhancing food security and nutrition. ■


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Uruguay

Good morning. We would like to congratulate the Missions of Angola and Spain for convening this meeting. The topic, which has been positively framed ("food security, nutrition and peace"), highlights the inseparable links between all of them, but if we were to focus on this topic from the other angle ("food insecurity and conflicts"), we would go down an embarrassing two-way street. On one hand, wars and conflicts have a devastating impact on the country's production systems, especially in the sectors of agriculture and livestock, which cause the loss of sustenance to millions of people and causes hunger and malnutrition. On the other hand, the absence of food security or the adoption of wrong economic policies can generate tensions and conflicts or can be abused by the interested parties that wish to exploit these vulnerabilities to strengthen extremism and violence.

It is opportune that the Security Council address and analyze all these factors with such a highly qualified panel in order to be alert and exercise preventative action if international peace and security are threatened.

Statistics still indicate that more people die of hunger and malnutrition that are indirectly due to conflicts instead of direct violence. Many studies analyze the terrible consequences of prolonged conflicts on the growth and nutrition of youth and children in Africa and the Middle East.

If we were to add the psychological component, which will accompany these generations their entire lives as if it were a nightmare - the assessment is heartbreaking.

The role of women in the economy of societies that suffer from violence due to armed conflicts is key, particularly in the agricultural sector. In Africa, we are all aware that women are in charge of obtaining potable water for their families, even if it means walking for hours. Therefore, even when they may be affected, displaced, or assassinated, their task, which is a foundation of nutrition for communities, is seriously compromised and consequently affects the diverse dimensions of society's development.

The impact of this serious situation on children is of grave concern. They are not


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vulnerable only due to the direct violence from armed groups that recruit them and submit them to labor or sexual slavery, among others, but they also indirectly face the effects of armed violence such as hunger and malnutrition.

In analyzing the works of the Security Council, Uruguay has already pronounced itself and notes with great concern that hunger is more than a fatality whether it be used as a political tool or as a weapon of war, which is a flagrant violation of the fundamental principles of International Law and ultimately, constitutes a real war crime.

The "First Commitment" of the Rome Declaration on World Food Security establishes: "We will ensure an enabling political, social, and economic environment designed to create the best conditions for the eradication of poverty and for durable peace, based on full and equal participation of women and men, which is most conducive to achieving sustainable food security for all."

In the recently adopted Sustainable Development Goals, the end of poverty, zero hunger and clean water along with sanitation are all closely linked with the topic we've discussed today.

We therefore dispose of legislation and programs of work that have been approved in that regard. What only remains is to respect these commitments, get to work with a global and comprehensive approach and promote concrete actions of cooperation at all levels; actions in which States/governments, regional organizations and agencies, as well as non-governmental organizations can participate.

Durable peace cannot be conceived without the full enjoyment of all human rights, amongst which the right to food is included nor without inclusive development that will eradicate poverty and hunger. Peace will only be sustainable when its guaranteed amongst other fundamentals such as food security, which contributes to reducing the developmental gap. ■


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United States of America

Thank you to the missions of Angola and Spain for bringing us together today. I think this is a very important and timely conversation and we are grateful for the opportunity to be able to hear from the FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva and the other speakers.

The significant impact of conflict on our ability to end hunger is all too clear after having listened to you this morning and having read the documentation provided. Conflict causes disruption to food supply chains, disruption of harvests, disruption of economic activity, and negatively impacts food security, obviously, and often exacerbates existing tensions. Without food security we’ve seen that a country’s capacity to emerge from conflict and to achieve an enduring peace and stability is extremely challenging.

Director-General Graziano da Silva, while we know that FAO has historically focused on the development side of food security, I’d also like to recognise the commendable

work that FAO does on the humanitarian front, providing seeds, tools and fertilizers to support rapid agricultural rehabilitation after a crisis. I’d also like to note that the upcoming World Humanitarian Summit in May will provide all of us with the opportunity to reaffirm our commitment to international humanitarian law and to demand that civilians have access to life saving supplies, including food, during times of conflict.

As previous speakers have noted, access to food has been increasingly used in conflict situations as a deliberate tactic of war and this has caused great human suffering and has violated international humanitarian law in many cases. We have only to look at the besieged and hard to reach areas in Syria such as Deraya and Duma where medicines and other critical supplies have been systematically denied or severely restricted, especially by the Syrian regime for months or even years. Deraya, of course, is a suburb of Damascus and just a short drive, we


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understand, from the UN’s food warehouses, but Deraya has not been able to receive a UN aid shipment since October 2012. According to the UN humanitarian team, just last week, the scarcity of food in Deraya has driven prices to unaffordable levels for the majority of residents, pressing many to survive on very meagre meals consisting of just a thin vegetable broth or even forcing some families, we’ve heard, to search for grass or leaves in order to feed their children.

In Madaya, in Syria, dozens reportedly died of starvation due to the stranglehold on a town by regime and pro-regime forces, and while there was an international outcry to push the Syrian regime to allow humanitarian access, we know that assistance still remains quite restricted and that medical supplies are still being routinely removed by the regime, and of course the town is still being surrounded by Hezbollah and other forces. This is simply unacceptable.

Now while Madaya may have focused the world’s attention on a truly horrific situation in the besieged areas across Syria, the truth is that thousands of people are still living in besieged and hard to reach places across the country and UN assistance has still only been able to reach a little more than 5 percent of the 4.6 million people in besieged and hard to reach areas, including those areas besieged by Da’esh. Six of the 18 besieged areas have yet to receive assistance. So we believe that it is time for the Syrian regime and all parties to lift the restrictions on humanitarian access and

to allow humanitarian assistance to reach all parts of Syria now. Denying civilians assistance has taken-on a new dimension in Syria where food is also being used as a recruitment tool by Da’esh. Desperation, of course, is fertile ground for terrorists and Da’esh is reportedly using the promise of ending hunger to lure vulnerable young men, in particular, to join its ranks.

We remain particularly concerned about the Da’esh besieged city of Deir Ezzor in Syria where we know the UN is working to resume airdrops to the population very soon. We understand that the current UN estimate is that 8.7 million people currently suffer from a lack of food security in Syria and thank you, Dr. Graziano da Silva and Ms Fukuda Parr, for highlighting that this has an impact in particular on women who are simply trying to keep their kids healthy and well nourished. But sadly Syria is not the only place where the denial of humanitarian assistance or access to food is being used as a weapon of war. In Taiz, Yemen’s third largest city, we see that Houthi forces have blocked humanitarian access to enclaves of the city’s 200.000 remaining residents over the past several months. The Houthis and other warring factions in Yemen are exacerbating our food security and the humanitarian crisis has already been set in motion after Yemen’s severe draught and past conflicts. Since the onset of the crisis, more than 21 million Yemenis, out of a population of 24.8 million, require urgent humanitarian assistance and we understand that some 14.4 million are unable to meet their daily food u


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u needs. And again, as in Syria we see that the combination of chaos and need drives young people to look at extremist groups as in Yemen - looking to Al Qaeda in some cases, for support and sustenance.

South Sudan has also used the denial of humanitarian access as a tool of war, despite 5.1 million people in need of assistance there. We understand that 2.8 million in South Sudan are facing severe food insecurity with some 40.000 facing catastrophic hunger leading to starvation, death and destitution. We’ve also heard from the office of the High Commissioner for human rights that government forces have used a scorched earth campaign in Unity State to deny communities there the ability to feed themselves. Humanitarian convoys have been looted in recent days and both government and opposition forces reported regularly that permission had been denied for convoys to move towards those in greatest need. Despite a recently signed peace treaty, South Sudanese leaders continue to place their personal interest ahead of the needs of their people so, you see, across the globe that we must demand, as an international community and as the Security Council, an end to using food as a weapon of war.

If you permit, I just have three short questions for the panellist. First, Syria’s development setbacks have been estimated as setbacks for several decades: agricultural infrastructure, while not totally destroyed, has of course suffered greatly as has market infrastructure so, perhaps directing this

question to Dr. Graziano da Silva, how will we, as an international community rebuild Syria’s food economy and what can humanitarian services do now to help make rebuilding possible when peace does come?

Secondly, many of us were at the open debate at the Security Council yesterday on women, peace and security, focused on the role of women in conflict prevention and resolution in Africa, so I understand that FAO recommends targeting women as the first beneficiaries of food aid and social protection in order to improve a households’ resilience and contribute to peace building. I wondered, Dr. Graziano da Silva, could you talk about FAO’s experience in food security programming with women, the challenges perhaps of gender bias and land rights, and the opportunities that FAO programmes can create for women to participate more fully in decision making?

Third question: in South Sudan we’ve seen that soaring food prices, rapidly depleting food supplies and a likely protracted lean season are impacting families and areas that had previously been relatively food secure and we understand that FAO was working on an urban response plan to increase incomes, to increase local food production, and to look at links to markets as a way of addressing these challenges. So more broadly, in South Sudan but perhaps beyond, how does conflict analysis inform the urban programming that FAO is doing, that FAO is undertaking in both conflict and post-conflict settings? Thank you. ■


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New Zealand

We see food security and nutrition as an integral part of sustainable development, political stability and conflict prevention. Food insecurity, as mentioned by others, can cause tensions and expand conflict and should be included in assessments of risks to peace and security particularly in fragile states. So the Security Council needs to be alert to potential warnings and be ready to respond.

New Zealand has a long track record of sharing agricultural expertise and working with developing countries, including in post-conflict situations, to improve farming practices and productivity. Our contributions have also included agribusiness development, improving biosecurity and support for sustainable fisheries. These efforts also contribute to strengthening livelihoods and to addressing youth employment.

We also see a close relationship between global food security and further liberalization of agricultural trade and the removal of agricultural subsidies, something that New Zealand has championed for a long time.

There is also a clear link between climate change and food security. We believe that climate change poses long term threats to food security and traditional livelihoods, including in our own region of the Pacific.

In our open debate last year on peace and security issues facing small island developing states (SIDS), New Zealand noted the importance of building resilience. This includes enabling states to derive full benefit from the sustainable use of their resource base, which for many SIDS is primarily fisheries.

As a member of the Security Council and as noted by other speakers, we continue to be very concerned about the hindrances faced by humanitarians in delivering food aid in various conflicts, including Syria, Yemen and South Sudan. Yemen was 90% dependant on food imports before the crisis began and we have seen numerous instances of hindrances to food delivery and over 14 million people are now food insecure.

Lastly, again as mentioned by others, the use of starvation as a weapon of war u


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u violates international humanitarian law and is a war crime. This tactic has been characteristic of the Syrian conflict, and New Zealand has worked with other co-leads and other council members to improve humanitarian access, and to highlight the plight of besieged civilians in Syria but sustained attention is needed to make more progress. ■


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Russian Federation

We would like to thank you for calling this meeting.

We share the concerns of the international community with regard to global food security and nutrition.

In certain cases, the worsening of the food security situation can increase the risk of conflict within society, which is why food price stability and sustainable food supplies must be central to States’ concerns.

In this regard, the implementation of decisions made at major international conferences on this issue – in particular the United Nations Summit on Sustainable Development in 2015, and the Second International Conference on Nutrition, held in Rome in 2014 – is particularly important. This is why the General Assembly has declared 2016–2025 the United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition.

An effective mechanism for decision-making and reacting to threats to global food security has already been established, in the form of the Committee on World Food Security, under the aegis of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome. It is an open Committee in which all stakeholders can participate. The Committee’s annual session is in fact the main political forum on food security and nutrition. Its reports are submitted annually to the General Assembly through the Economic and Social Council.

The submission of the Framework for Action for Food Security and Nutrition in Protracted Crises for adoption by the Committee is particularly pertinent. While the Framework for Action is not legally binding, it constitutes a flexible mechanism for developing a comprehensive approach to addressing the root causes of food insecurity in crisis situations, and will be able to offer a response to many of the issues raised at today’s event. u


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u We very much value the comprehensive nature of the Framework for Action, which is adapted to the specific requirements of protracted crises and aimed at the coordination of emergency humanitarian assistance, as well as long-term recovery and development.

In this regard, we consider direct intervention by the Security Council in this issue to be counter productive, since it does not have either the relevant expertise or the necessary instruments at its disposal. By involving the Security Council in issues that are not within its profile, we risk further politicizing this

discussion and diverting the attention of Security Council members away from issues that are directly within its mandate.

In the New York arena, real added value could be brought to discussions on enhancing agricultural production, mechanisms for technology transfer and funding for agricultural development, as well as facilitating access to the global market for agricultural products from developing countries, in the context of the work of the Second Committee of the General Assembly, the Economic and Social Council, and the High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development. ■


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I would like to start by thanking His Excellency Ambassador Ismael Martins of Angola and Ambassador Román Marchesi of Spain for organizing this meeting. I also thank Mr José Graziano da Silva, Director-General of FAO, for his presentation.

I will take this opportunity to highlight the following remarks: food security is both a cause and a consequence of conflicts, contributing to a vicious cycle where food insecurity adversely affects peace. Also conflict itself is a significant source of food insecurity, and mortalities caused by food insecurity can sometimes exceed death caused directly by violence. In addition, strategic food withholding is also used as a tactic of war in various parts of the world.

Conflict undermines all four dimensions of food security: availability, access, utilization and stability as it disrupts production and flows of food. It also drives up investments in food production and marketing activities.

The international community has a significant role to play in encouraging peace building and the resolution of protracted crisis. Many

of these interventions address conflict-related food insecurity. We need to integrate a peace-building approach into food related interventions in responding to protracted crises. This approach will take us well beyond emergency relief and can contribute to rebuilding healthy and peaceful societies.

The role of international organizations is particularly important in conflicts and in the post-conflict recovery period because of reduced government capacity to provide basic services in these cases, and because of the perceived impartiality of aid workers. This circular link between food insecurity and conflict highlights the need to address food security in a comprehensive manner and promote holistic interventions, avoiding the unidimensional security approach, where economic, social and environmental dimensions are interlinked and where national actions are reinforced by international support. This is particularly relevant in the context of the 2030 Agenda adopted by world leaders a few months ago where they expressed determination to end hunger in order to achieve food u

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u security and to end all forms of malnutrition. Targets linked to SDG 2 of the Agenda provide a worldwide prescription of measures that the international community is committed to undertake in order to achieve this goal.

We also believe that addressing water scarcity, land degradation, draught and desertification should be seen as priorities when dealing with several global political challenges. According to FAO estimates, global food production needs to be increased by 60% by 2050, and thus involve fighting water scarcity, desertification, land degradation, and draught, and providing adequate answers to the many questions that arise in this regard.

We also highlight the basic recognition of the needs of Africa. The agricultural sector in Africa accounts for more than 60% of employment, 20% of total exports and 17% of GDP. The potential for economic

development in rural continents such as Africa hangs on improved agricultural productivity and profitability. The attainment of food security in our continent does not take place in isolation from overall efforts at comprehensive development, it is linked to the state of the economy, infrastructure, roads and transportation networks and domestic trade structures. This requires real support from developed countries.

In this context, we should also urge members of the WTO to ensure the establishment of a fair and market oriented international agricultural trade regime which assists developing countries in increasing agricultural production capacity and exports and ensures special and preferential treatment and enhanced investments in the long-term prevention of conflicts. Let me conclude, Mr Chairman, by thanking again Angola and Spain for taking the initiative and organizing this timely discussion. ■


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I would first like to welcome you, Mr. President, and to warmly thank Angola and Spain for taking the opportunity for this relevant initiative to hold the Arria Formula meeting on such an important topic — and one that is dear to my country: the relationship between food security, nutrition and peace.

I would like to share with you, on behalf of my nation, our thoughts on the three points of your excellent concept note:

Firstly, regarding the consequences of conflict on food security, two remarks about this:

Foremost, in the short-term, conflicts have a short-term effect on the affected populations’ food security: disruption of trade, and therefore, access to food, interruption of agriculture production cycles, population displacement and more. Even if the international community has instruments to respond to situations of food insecurity (specifically, WFP and FAO) the issue of these programmes safely delivering to the targeted populations is, unfortunately, still a problem.

In addition, conflicts also have long-term consequences for food security and these are too often neglected: the destruction of the means of production (livestock, seeds, tools, buildings) damages the populations’ capacity for resilience and erodes their food security for many years after a conflict has ended. Here, social safety net programs or kits to support start-up campaigns play a positive role in mitigating the long-term effects that conflict has on food security.

Populations affected by conflict suffer from long-lasting malnutrition, particularly when the situation continues or is reoccurring; malnutrition impacts the cognitive development of the younger generation. Particular attention to the nutrition of women and children in conflict situations is crucial to avoid compromising the future development of these populations.

Last October, the Committee on World Food Security (CFS), an inclusive governance platform for international food security, adopted the Framework for Action for Food Security and Nutrition in Protracted Crises. We applaud its u

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u adoption and support its implementation and operation.

Secondly, regarding the links between food security and the prevention of conflict:

If the issues surrounding food security are rarely the sole factor in conflict, they often continue to act as a trigger. There are four reasons for this:

The drastic increase in agricultural and food prices which cause food to be more expensive, and even inaccessible, can lead to riots and degenerate into conflict. This was the case in 2008 with the food price crisis that led to violence in more than 40 countries and reminded us that the agricultural sector had for too long been forsaken by public policy and developmental aid. During the Arab Spring, food prices were also a main reason for the popular uprising (the first demonstrations in Tunisia were originally to protest the high cost of bread).

Instruments that can limit the effects that the volatility of agricultural prices have on the population can contribute to the avoidance of conflict. Implementing social safety nets, establishing emergency food reserves (like those created by ECOWAS in 2012 with support from the EU and France) or initiatives that anticipate volatility in agricultural and food markets — such as the Agriculture Market Information System (AMIS) or the satellite-based Global Agricultural Monitoring Initiative (GEOGLAM) launched during the G20 in

2011 — are also instruments that can be used to prevent conflict.

Equity, as it relates to the ownership of the natural resources on which agriculture depends (land and water) is also a central issue. Conflicts between ranchers, or between ranchers and farmers, have served as triggering or aggravating factors for various crises (CAR, South Sudan, issue of land access during the Ivory Coast crisis). The international community also has principles to encourage more equitable and sustainable land management: these are voluntary guidelines for responsible land ownership governance adopted by the Committee on World Food Security in 2012. France promoted the application of these principles and applauded the work carried out by FAO to disseminate them and make them operational.

The impact of climate change on water resources available for agricultural production, land degradation — particularly within countries in the Sahel region —emphasize further the conflicts surrounding control of these natural resources. Both the issues of strengthening the population’s resilience and providing support to the most vulnerable countries so that they are able to adapt to climate change are linked, therefore, to the prevention of conflict. The Paris Climate Agreement represents true progress; for the first time, the issue of adaptation was placed on the same level as reducing emissions.

Rural under-employment and the low return of investment in agricultural activities in


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numerous developing countries make illegal and war-related activities more attractive, particularly to the young.

Three hundred million youths will enter the labour force in sub-Saharan Africa in the next 15 years, 65% of them will be from rural areas. In this context, where the manufacturing and service sectors in these countries are still underdeveloped, the agricultural sector seems the most likely to absorb this labour force, with the risk that rural youth will migrate toward cities or zones in conflict. It is important, then, that the development of agricultural and rural areas is accompanied by the creation of a great many jobs that are better paid and less arduous and that are passed through local family farms able to sustainably produce wealth and employment.

In this regard, France recently launched a Priority Solidarity Fund (referred to as FSP in French) for the Sahel Cross-border Assistance Program (referred to as ACTS in French) (2015-2017, € 2.5 M) targeting a border area between Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali (Liptako-Gourma) to respond to insecurity in the Saharan-Sahel region

(terrorism, trafficking, organized crime) by strengthening cooperation between the various actors in security and justice, and, in parallel, promoting local development in support of regional authorities. Relationships are being built between this project’s pastoralism support component and the World Bank’s regional pastoralism support project for the Sahel region (PRAPS), using about USD 60 million of the programme’s total USD 243 million by the World Bank.

Third and lastly, on the importance of considering food security when taking approaches to promote peace and stability.

Food insecurity and conflict are intrinsically linked and, for this reason, we can no longer be satisfied to intervene on an emergency basis to mitigate the effects of conflict on the food security of affected populations. It is important to include these actions in a continuum between emergency and development so as to strengthen the populations’ resilience, ensure food security, and encourage economic development in the affected countries, while also reducing destabilizing factors. ■


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Je tenais tout d’abord à vous féliciter Monsieur le Président, et à vivement remercier l’Angola et l’Espagne, d’avoir pris l’initiative heureuse et pertinente de cette réunion en format Arria sur ce thème majeur - et qui est cher à mon pays - des relations entre sécurité alimentaire, nutrition et paix.

Je souhaiterais vous faire part, à titre national, de nos réflexions sur les trois points de votre excellente note de concept:

En premier lieu, sur les conséquences des conflits sur la sécurité alimentaire, deux remarques à cet égard:

Tout d’abord, à court terme, les conflits affectent la sécurité alimentaire des populations touchées: interruption des échanges et donc de l’accès aux aliments, perturbation des cycles de productions agricoles, déplacement des populations...

Or, même si la communauté internationale s’est dotée d’instruments pour répondre aux situations d’insécurité alimentaire (notamment le Programme alimentaire mondial – PAM – et l’Organisation des Nations-Unies pour l’agriculture et l’alimentation – FAO), la question de la sécurisation de l’acheminement de ces programmes d’appui vers les populations concernées reste malheureusement encore posée.

D’autre part, les conflits ont aussi des conséquences à plus long terme sur la sécurité alimentaire et celles-ci sont encore trop souvent négligées:

La destruction des moyens de production (bétail, semences, outils, bâtiments) met à mal les capacités de résilience des populations et hypothèquent la sécurité alimentaire de ces dernières bien des années encore après la fin du conflit. Les programmes de filets sociaux, ou les kits d’appui au redémarrage des campagnes jouent ici un rôle positif pour atténuer les effets d’un conflit sur la sécurité alimentaire à plus long terme.

La malnutrition durable dont souffrent les populations affectées par les conflits, notamment lorsque la situation se prolonge ou se répète, a un impact sur le développement cognitif des jeunes générations. Une attention particulière à la nutrition des femmes et des enfants dans les situations de conflit est fondamentale pour éviter de compromettre le développement futur de ces populations.

Le Comité de la sécurité alimentaire mondiale (CSA), enceinte inclusive de gouvernance de la sécurité alimentaire mondiale, en octobre dernier, a adopté le Cadre d’action pour la sécurité alimentaire et la nutrition lors des crises prolongées. Nous nous félicitons de cette adoption et


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soutenons sa mise en œuvre et son opérationnalisation.

En second lieu, sur les liens entre sécurité alimentaire et prévention des conflits:

Si les questions de sécurité alimentaire sont rarement le seul facteur de conflit elles jouent néanmoins souvent un rôle de déclencheur. Et cela pour quatre raisons:

La hausse brutale des prix agricoles et alimentaires en rendant l’alimentation plus chère, voire inaccessible, peut entraîner des émeutes et dégénérer en conflits. Ce fut le cas en 2008 avec la crise des prix alimentaires qui a conduit à des troubles dans plus de 40 pays et nous a rappelé que le secteur agricole avait été pendant trop longtemps délaissé des politiques publiques et de l’aide au développement. La question des prix alimentaires était également une revendication de la population lors des Printemps arabes (les premières manifestations en Tunisie étaient à l’origine pour protester contre le coût élevé du pain).

Les instruments permettant de limiter les effets de la volatilité des prix agricoles sur les populations peuvent contribuer à prévenir les conflits. La mise en place de filets sociaux, l’établissement de réserves alimentaires d’urgence (comme celle lancée par la CEDEAO en 2012 avec l’appui de l’UE et de la France) ou les initiatives permettant d’anticiper la volatilité des marchés agricoles et alimentaires (tels le système d’information sur les marchés

agricoles – AMIS – ou l’initiative de suivi satellitaire de l’agriculture mondiale – GEOGLAM – lancés lors du G20 en 2011) sont autant d’instruments à privilégier dans la prévention des conflits.

La question de l’équité dans la propriété des ressources naturelles dont l’agriculture dépend (foncier, eau) est aussi centrale. Les conflits entre éleveurs, ou entre éleveurs et agriculteurs ont pu servir de facteurs déclencheurs ou aggravants dans différentes crises (RCA, Soudan du Sud, question de l’accès à la terre dans la crise en Côte d’Ivoire). La communauté internationale s’est également dotée de principes pour favoriser une gestion la plus équitable et durable possible des questions foncières: il s‘agit des Directives volontaires pour une gouvernance responsable des régimes fonciers adoptées par le Comité de la sécurité alimentaire mondiale en 2012. La France promeut leur application et tient à saluer le travail mené par l’Organisation des Nations Unies pour l’agriculture et l’alimentation (FAO) pour accompagner leur dissémination et leur opérationnalisation.

L’impact du changement climatique sur les ressources en eau disponibles pour la production agricole, la dégradation des terres, notamment dans les pays sahéliens, accentuent encore les conflits autour du contrôle de ces ressources naturelles. La question du renforcement de la résilience des populations comme celle de l’appui à l’adaptation des pays les plus vulnérables au changement climatique sont donc liées à la prévention des conflits. u


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u L’Accord de Paris sur le Climat, qui pour la première fois met la question de l’adaptation au même rang que celle de la réduction des émissions, constitue une véritable avancée.

Le sous-emploi rural et le faible retour sur investissement des activités agricoles dans de nombreux pays en développement rend plus attractives les activités illégales et guerrières, notamment pour les jeunes.

Trois cents millions de jeunes devraient entrer sur le marché du travail en Afrique sub-saharienne dans les 15 ans à venir. Soixante-cinq pour cent seront issus du milieu rural. Dans un contexte où les secteurs secondaires et tertiaires de ces pays sont encore trop peu développés, le secteur agricole apparaît comme le plus à même d’absorber cette main d’œuvre, au risque de voir les jeunes ruraux migrer vers les villes ou les zones de conflit. Il importe donc d’accompagner le développement des territoires agricoles et ruraux pour créer des emplois en grand nombre, mieux rémunéré et moins pénible et cela passe par le renforcement des agricultures familiales locales, capables de produire de façon durable des richesses et de l’emploi.

À cet égard, La France vient de lancer un projet FSP “Appui à la coopération transfrontalière au Sahel –ACTS” (2015-

2017, 2,5 M€) qui cible une zone frontalière entre le Burkina Faso, le Niger et le Mali (Liptako-Gourma) afin de répondre à l’insécurité dans la région saharo-sahélienne (terrorisme, trafic, criminalité organisée) par le renforcement de la coopération entre les différents acteurs de la sécurité et de la justice, et la promotion, en parallèle, du développement local en appui aux collectivités territoriales. Des liens sont en train d’être développés entre le volet appui au pastoralisme de ce projet et le Projet régional d’appui au pastoralisme au Sahel -PRAPS (environ 60 millions sur les 243 millions que représente l’ensemble du programme) de la Banque mondiale.

Enfin, sur l’importance de prendre en compte la sécurité alimentaire dans les approches visant à promouvoir la paix et la stabilité:

En effet, insécurité alimentaire et conflit sont intrinsèquement liés: à cet égard, nous ne pouvons plus nous contenter d’intervenir dans l’urgence pour pallier les effets des conflits sur la sécurité alimentaire des populations touchées. Il importe d’inscrire ces actions dans un continuum entre urgence et développement de façon à renforcer la résilience des populations, à assurer la sécurité alimentaire et à favoriser le développement économique des pays touchés, diminuant ainsi ces facteurs de déstabilisation. ■


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I would like to thank the Angolan and Spanish delegations for organizing this Arria-Formula meeting on Food Security, Nutrition and Peace.

In addition, I would like to recognize the presence of Mr. José Graziano da Silva, FAO Director-General, and would like to thank all other participants for the high quality of their communications.

From the World Summit for Social Development in Copenhagen in 1995 to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in between, the fight against hunger has always been a priority of the international community.

For example, the second Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) addresses the eradication of hunger and achieving food security while the 16th Goal calls the international community’s attention to the benefits of building peaceful and inclusive societies to prevent and reduce all forms of violence - all this within the framework of a perfect interdependence and interrelations between the 17 SDGs.

Therefore, at a time when the international community is committed to placing the individual at the heart of the actions it takes, leading to, for example, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development as well as the report recommendations from the High-Level Independent Panel on Peace Operations, it is worthwhile reflecting on the link between food insecurity and peace.

Viewed through the angle of conflict resolution and the pursuit of peace, food insecurity can be understood, not only as a source of potential conflicts, but also as a consequence of them.

A symptom of poverty with all the associated aspects of low levels of education and high unemployment; food insecurity can lead to instability.

This has been the case in many of the countries affected by riots led by disadvantaged populations which were made up mostly of young people in search of a better life.

This situation represents fertile ground for various phenomena such as migration, u

Senegal


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u organized cross-border crime and even violent extremism.

It creates the necessity to specifically focus on the situation that the young are experiencing, especially those coming from disadvantaged sectors of society.

It is also important to include food insecurity as one of the consequences of conflict.

Famine has always been used as a war tactic and it has been a reason for massive population displacement.

This basic premise also demonstrates the lack of respect for the rules of international humanitarian law with regard to its impact on the humanitarian situation.

We must also remember the effects of armed conflict on governance, and, in consequence, on the ability of States to ensure agricultural production or to maintain related commercial trade.

From the preceding information, we can see that food insecurity - the most basic responsibility of any government - merits the international community’s specific attention, particularly if this insecurity undermines peace efforts.

Hunger and food insecurity are not always a consequence of conflict. Often, they also result from climatic conditions, natural catastrophes, drought or other phenomena, such as infestation by granivorous birds or locusts.

Certain regions of the world appear to be more susceptible to these risks than others.

Ambassador Roman rightly reminded us, as have several other participants, that the Sahel region repeatedly faces such scourges, and that this is not unknown to the new phenomena and threats observed in the region: rural exodus, migration, trafficking, the potential for violent extremism, etc.

To address this situation, draft solutions have been suggested by those involved in the briefing as well as by the FAO Director-General; these are related to governance, security and resilience. We applaud their relevance and support them without reserve. We believe, furthermore, in emphasizing the importance of providing support for agricultural policies; I should say that agriculture is the leading employer in the countries of the South which helps them attain food self-sufficiency – the best way to ensure food security – and to ensure stable incomes for those who work the land. ■


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Je voudrais remercier les délégations angolaise et espagnole pour l’organisation de cette réunion en formule Arria sur la sécurité alimentaire et la paix.

Auparavant, qu’il me soit permis de saluer la présence de Monsieur José Graziano da Silva, Directeur Général de la FAO, et tous les autres intervenants pour la qualité de leurs communications.

Du Sommet de Copenhague sur le développement social de 1995 au Programme de développement durable à l’horizon 2030 en passant par les objectifs du Millénaire pour le développement (OMD), la lutte contre la faim a toujours été une priorité de la communauté internationale.

C’est ainsi, par exemple, que le deuxième objectif de développement durable (ODD) invite à l’éradication de la faim et à l’atteinte de la sécurité alimentaire alors que le seizième objectif attire l’attention de la communauté internationale sur l’intérêt d’instaurer des sociétés pacifiques et inclusives afin de prévenir et de réduire toutes formes de violence, le tout dans le cadre d’une interdépendance et dans l’interrelation parfaite entre les 17 ODD.

Ainsi, à un moment où la communauté internationale s’engage à placer l’individu au cœur de son action, tel qu’il résulte du Programme de développement durable à

l’horizon 2030 et ainsi que le recommande le rapport du Panel indépendant de haut niveau sur les opérations de maintien de la paix, il s’avère légitime de s’interroger sur les liens entre insécurité alimentaire et paix.

Examinée sous l’angle de la résolution des conflits et de la recherche de la paix, l’insécurité alimentaire pourrait être appréhendée, non seulement comme source potentielle de conflits, mais aussi comme conséquence de ces derniers.

En effet, élément symptomatique de la pauvreté avec tout son corollaire de faible niveau d’éducation et de chômage élevé, l’insécurité alimentaire peut conduire à l’instabilité.

Ce fut le cas dans beaucoup de pays frappés par des émeutes menées par des populations défavorisées, dont la plupart sont composées de jeunes en quête de bien-être.

Cette situation n’est pas sans constituer un terreau fertile pour certains phénomènes tels que les migrations, la criminalité transnationale organisée ou encore l’extrémisme violent.

D’où la nécessité de mettre un accent particulier sur la situation des jeunes, notamment ceux provenant des couches défavorisées. u


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u Il est tout aussi important de placer l’insécurité alimentaire comme une conséquence des conflits.

En effet, la famine a de tout temps été utilisée comme tactique de guerre, laquelle est à l’origine de déplacements massifs de populations.

Ce postulat de base pose ainsi le non respect des règles du droit international humanitaire au regard de son impact sur la situation humanitaire.

Aussi faut-il rappeler les effets des conflits armés sur la gouvernance, et, par conséquent, les capacités des États à assurer la production agricole ou à entretenir des échanges commerciaux à ce sujet.

Il ressort de ce qui précède, que l’insécurité alimentaire, responsabilité première de tout Gouvernement, mérite l’attention particulière de la communauté internationale, surtout si elle doit saper les efforts de paix.

La faim et l’insécurité alimentaire ne sont pas toujours que la conséquence des conflits. Bien souvent, elles résultent aussi des conditions climatiques, des catastrophes

naturelles, de la sécheresse ou d’autres phénomènes tels que l’invasion des oiseaux granivores ou des criquets dits pèlerins.

Certaines régions du monde semblent plus vulnérables à ces risques que d’autres.

L’Ambassadeur Román Oyarzun l’a rappelé, à juste titre, repris en cela par plusieurs autres intervenants le Sahel fait face de manière récurrente à ces fléaux, ce qui n’est, sans doute pas étranger aux phénomènes et menaces nouveaux notés dans la région: exode rural, migration, trafics, possibilités de basculement dans l’extrémisme violent etc.

Pour pallier cette situation, des ébauches de solution ont été dégagées par les brieffeurs ainsi que par le Directeur général de la FAO et qui tournent autour de la gouvernance, de la sécurité et de la résilience. Nous saluons leur pertinence et y adhérons sans réserve. Nous tenons, par ailleurs, à souligner l’importance d’appuyer les politiques agricoles, je devrais dire l’agriculture premier employeur dans des pays du sud pour les aider à atteindre l’autosuffisance alimentaire, moyen le plus sûr d’y assurer la sécurité alimentaire et de garantir des revenus stables aux travailleurs de la terre. ■


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I’d like to join others in commending you for organizing this important discussion on a topic that is very relevant to the Security Council’s work particularly in the area of conflict prevention. Thank you also to our briefers for their excellent presentations. As we’ve heard, food security is a critically important aspect of conflict as a potential driver and as a key component of building peace. The knock-on effects are equally destabilizing: population movements, humanitarian crises, economic consequences and the upstream indicators are increasingly well known: rising food prices, water scarcity, desertification, livestock diseases.

This leads me to ask my first question which is: in the interest of conflict prevention, how do we get better at acting on these upstream indicators as the Security Council?

What recommendations would you have for the Council on how to act in these circumstances?

Secondly, I think it is important too that in any action that we take on this, we also work alongside other actors, primarily the development actors, humanitarian actors and peace building actors. Could you say a little bit more about how this coordination works at the moment? Thank you very much. ■

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Malaysia

I wish to commend Angola and Spain for convening this Arria Formula meeting. I would also like to express my appreciation to all the briefers for their inputs and insights.

Food security without doubt has become an issue of great importance, not only in developing countries, but also in the developed countries. With the adoption of the 2030 Agenda last year, addressing food security is now a priority agenda for every government at all levels. Many factors contribute to insufficient food supply from climate change, political instability, diseases, land degradation and the list goes on.

Violent conflicts create food insecurity, malnutrition and in some instances famine. Populations displaced by violent conflicts possibly suffer the greatest difficulties in gaining access to food. They are separated from basic resources of livelihoods and incomes, leading as a result to the migration of populations.

As mentioned by you, Chair, sometimes conflicts happen because governments failed to provide sufficient food supplies.

When the people have nothing to eat or when food prices are high they will vent their anger on government and this can lead to social unrest and violence. Malaysia believes a comprehensive approach should be adopted to address this issue.

Delivering food and other humanitarian aid during conflicts for example is a dangerous task. Assaults on convoys and hostage taking during the course of humanitarian operations to distribute food and aid are not uncommon. In order to ensure uninterrupted access to food in conflict areas, close cooperation with the relevant agencies’ stakeholders on the ground with DPKO is important in this endeavour.

In this regard, Malaysia looks forward to this issue being considered at the upcoming World Humanitarian Summit. In the post-conflict period, the necessary support to building resilience should also be given due attention. Recovery programmes to improve food production through the creation and rehabilitation of agricultural assets are pertinent to ensure sustainability in the post-conflict area.


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In the wider context, we note that in the food security related targets and the SDG such as Goal 2, due attention should be given to the national, regional and international levels. Malaysia believes achieving this goal will offer key solutions for development and is central for hunger and poverty eradication.

Any solution to food security will go far beyond simply cultivating crops. It is equally important for us to establish risk management systems and tools. One: we must provide food safety nets that offer immediate relief to disadvantaged groups during crises. Two: ensure adequate emergency food reserves and relief

systems as a buffer to natural and human made disasters and three: introduce risk management systems and tools such as crop insurance and future contracts to help mitigate the effects of price volatility and crises.

In closing, I wish to share with you that Malaysia has recently hosted the 33rd session of the FAO Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific from 7 to 11 March 2016. The Conference, among other things, agreed that an increase in agricultural productivity will raise the standard of living of rural populations and contribute to sustainable economic growth as well as improve food security and nutrition. ■


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Venezuela

On behalf of the delegation of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, I would like to thank the Ambassadors of Spain and Angola for convening this very important theme and for the concept note prepared before. I would also like to thank Mr Graziano da Silva, Madam Fukuda and Madam Cliffe for their presentations.

As has been stated on many occasions by our country in this council, for Venezuela it is vital to provide timely attention to the root causes of armed conflicts to ensure truly sustainable peace, as well as addressing poverty, the lack of access to basic services, housing and of course food, which is of crucial importance for guaranteeing stable, peaceful and prosperous societies, as well as the very essence of the enjoyment of the right to development.

Civil society is the primary victim of aspects associated with the lack of food, due to the interruption of distribution and production mechanisms which would otherwise ease the multiplication of suffering of those who have already been subjected to the scourges of war.

The United Nations is, and has been, the best place to address such issues organically and to host multilateral discussions on these themes, along with its project work in the fields of development, production, capacity building as well as bringing together expertise led by UNDP and FAO. Another important source of efforts has been the work of regional organizations around the world to define national and global strategies to eradicate poverty and malnutrition.

On an annual basis, the NAM movement in the General Assembly promotes the approval of a resolution on the right to food, as well as another one promoted by the G77 and China on agricultural production, food security and nutrition. The latter underscores that “it is important for the developing countries to define their own food security strategies that can improve food security and malnutrition because this is a critical national responsibility and the plans to confront the problem, in terms of eradicating poverty, should be developed, formulated and directed by each country in consultation with the main stakeholders at the international level.”


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In this context, the goal is that as a major global strategy has been drawn up with states as the main drivers, the force of the international community as a whole should be focused on eradicating hunger and guaranteeing nutrition. This is the second SDG, recently approved together with eradicating poverty. For Venezuela, coordination and dialogue between the GA, as an important element in the discussions, affected countries, specialized agencies, and regional organizations is of vital importance since they are experts in the field when it comes to defining strategies and actions to guarantee food security at the national and international levels, which in turn leads to a progressive increase of their scope to mitigate the impact of the structural causes of conflict.

We also reject the use of hunger as a weapon of war to the detriment of the civilian population affected by armed conflict. It is a violation of international law and a violation of human rights law. This strategy, which is frequently used by terrorist groups, only perpetuates the circle of pain where the weakest suffer most.

Finally, we believe that efforts to eradicate the human tragedy of hunger and fully guarantee food security should be carried out in a concerted and coordinated manner, expanding as far as possible the space for discussion and ensuring the full participation of Member States as they are the ones primarily responsible for guaranteeing implementation of regional and international strategies in the field of combatting hunger. ■


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Angola

With the presentation of the topic of Food Security and Peace for the United Nations Security Council’s Arria Formula discussions, Angola is bringing the attention of the international community to the necessity of preserving peace by ensuring food security. Furthermore, through examples that we have of conflicts throughout the world, it has been proven that there is no food security without peace and no peace without food security.

Hunger and poverty, both associated with food security, can, in most cases, allow injustice and discrimination to degenerate into armed conflict, compromising international peace and security.

In summary, we intend to prove here that food security is key to ensuring social and political stability, as well as sustainable development within national, regional and international contexts, to preserve peace and security throughout the world.

However, we hope that discussion on this subject is not confined to a single Arria Formula meeting. These discussions should also influence the agenda of other

conferences, such as the World Humanitarian Summit in Istanbul, as well as being included in the agenda of FAO, IFAD and WFP.

We would like to highlight the importance of the fact that, after the signing of peace agreements, periods of transition should be established with solid support from the international community, to avoid a return to armed conflict and to ensure the beginning of agri-food production, which in turn leads to food security.

Finally, I recommend that the co-presidents consider issuing a statement reflecting the outcome of this discussion. ■


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Florêncio de Almeida Ambassadeur, Représentant Permanent de la FAO à Rome

Avec la présentation du thème de la Sécurité Alimentaire et Paix pour le débat Arria Formula du Conseil de sécurité des Nations unies, l'Angola prétend éveiller l'attention de la Communauté Internationale sur la nécessité de préserver la paix en vue d'assurer la sécurité alimentaire, puisque de par les exemples que nous avons des conflits dans le monde, il est prouvé qu'il n'y a pas de Sécurité Alimentaire sans Paix et pas de Paix sans Sécurité Alimentaire.

La faim et la pauvreté, lesquelles sont associées à la Sécurité Alimentaire peuvent, dans la plupart des cas, permettre injustices et discriminations qui dégénèrent en conflit armé, compromettant ainsi la Paix et la Sécurité Internationales.

En bref, nous avons l'intention de prouver ici que la Sécurité Alimentaire est un élément clé pour assurer la stabilité sociale et politique, ainsi que le développement durable dans des contextes national, régional ou international, en sauvegarde de la Paix et la Sécurité dans le monde.

Cependant, nous espérons que les discussions sur ce sujet ne restent pas circonscrites au seul débat Arria Formula. Ces discussions doivent également influencer les agendas d’autres Conférences, comme la prochaine d’Istanbul, et

commencer à faire partie des agendas de la FAO, du PAM et du FIDA.

Nous souhaitons mettre en exergue l'importance du fait qu’après la signature d’Accords de Paix, il est nécessaire d'établir des périodes de transition, avec le soutien solide de la Communauté Internationale, pour empêcher un retour à un conflit armé et assurer le début de la production agro-alimentaire, ce qui mène vers la sécurité alimentaire.

Enfin, je recommande la possibilité d'élaborer une déclaration des co-présidents qui puissent refléter les résultats de ce débat. ■


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Italy

We welcome very much today’s initiative which contributes to the ongoing process of acknowledging that today’s challenges to peace and security are more complex than in the past and that new threats need to be considered. Agenda 2030 is very clear on this by establishing a stronger link between the SDGs and peace, recognizing that they are mutually reinforcing.

As a country placed in the heart of the Mediterranean and very close to our African partners, Italy has always been aware of the security implications of food security and of the importance of ending hunger as a moral obligation and a strategic investment. Food security and Nutrition are also about preventing conflict and instability; promoting sustainable development and agriculture; building sustainable peace; empowering women; protecting biodiversity and the climate; fostering employment; reducing distressed migration and forced displacements.

"We consider a lack of access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to be a violation of human dignity". It is written in the preamble of the Milan Charter signed by more than

one million people (citizens, companies, NGOs) during the Expo held in Milan last year and devoted to the theme “Feeding the Planet. Energy for Life”. The Charter was handed over to the Secretary-General on 16 October 2015 during his visit to Expo on World Food Day as a call to further action on the theme.

Our commitment to this issue is not recent. During our G8 Presidency in 2009 we launched the “Aquila Food Security Initiative” and in 2014 we organized with FAO and WHO the Second International Conference on Nutrition which adopted the Declaration on Nutrition (the “Rome Declaration”) as a set of political principles and practical measures that, if implemented, will advance our shared cause. The General Assembly will soon adopt the resolution endorsing the Declaration and launching the UN Decade of Action on Nutrition.

Let me conclude with a question. As you know Rome today proudly hosts the headquarters of FAO, IFAD and WFP and has grown into the main United Nations center for food security and sustainable


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agriculture. Given the overall relevance these issues are gaining, how can we promote a stronger and more frequent interaction between Rome and NY on these matters? ■


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Germany

Co-Chairs (Permanent Representatives of Angola and Spain),

Four weeks ago we presented the latest World Risk Report in the German House here in New York. This joint effort of the United Nations University’s Institute for Environment and Human Security in Bonn and the German alliance “Development Works” has a thematic focus on food security. It shows how closely food security and risk vulnerability are connected. Natural disasters often have devastating consequences for a country’s food situation. And food insecurity on the other hand increases vulnerability to disasters. Consequently, the World Risk Report recommends investing in food security as a means to reduce the vulnerability of societies towards disasters.

As we heard earlier in this meeting, the worldwide need for food and agricultural commodities is growing much faster than agricultural production. If we do not react swiftly, global food insecurity will not just be caused by a lack of access to food but also by significant shortages in supply. Price hikes due to food shortages could become

existential threats for the poorest even more than today. Food insecurity combined with limited income opportunities may increase the likelihood of instability and forced migration.

We know that most of the people suffering from hunger are living in rural areas of developing countries. Correspondingly, the largest migration movement worldwide is from rural to urban areas. The integration of rural migrants is an enormous challenge for many cities in the world but at the same time offers plenty of opportunities if it is managed in an intelligent way. We should take this into account when designing the New Urban Agenda as the outcome of the Habitat III Conference.

Food security is essential to sustainable development in all its three dimensions, social, environmental and economic. It is a prerequisite for free, just and prosperous societies. Consequently, the implementation of the human Right to Food plays an important role in peacebuilding and security policy.


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In the long-term, world food supply can only be secured by efficient, locally adapted, sustainable agriculture and the development of economically attractive rural areas as well as access to sufficient food supplies for all. Agriculture must be made more resilient in order to cope with the impacts of climate change, with market shocks and with social and structural change. Therefore, agriculture is not only the key to food security but also to the political and social opportunities of a region. We should bear this in mind when developing security policies. Co-Chairs,

The German Government has therefore initiated the Special Initiative One World – No Hunger. Our aim is to fight hunger and malnutrition, particularly in Africa. We promote climate – smart and sustainable agriculture through innovations that will not

only boost food production but also create jobs and incomes for small-scale farmers and opportunities in rural areas. We also support targeted measures to improve food and nutrition security for the most vulnerable groups such as mothers and small children.

Germany has increased its support to countries affected by conflicts and crisis. Immediate short-term measures are closely linked to comprehensive long-term measures that strengthen people´s resilience to future food related crises.

I hope that this meeting sends a signal that we are determined, also in the context of the UN Security Council, to aim at achieving food security and nutrition for all as a prerequisite of peace, stability and equal opportunities across the globe. ■


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Turkey

We too thank Angola and Spain for organizing this meeting and welcome the Director-General of FAO to the UN and appreciate the contribution of briefers to our debate.

Today, the world’s population has reached 7.2 billion. Pressures on land, soil, air, water resources and biodiversity as well as the impacts of climate change are intensifying.

Undernourishment is still a chronic problem. Every day about 800 million people go to bed hungry.

The most important objective of the 2030 Agenda is to eradicate poverty. To reach the objective of effectively implementing the SDGs, it will be essential to ensure food security and nutrition.

This means that we need to produce more, while eliminating wasteful practices and policies. We will need to move towards more sustainable food systems.

Promoting responsible investments in agriculture and food systems, encouraging public-private partnerships, improving market transparency, supporting human

resource development and fostering sustainable productivity growth are important elements to improve global food security.

It is also important to note the multidimensional relation between peace, security and development, including the food security aspect, as exemplified by the 2008 food crisis and the instabilities that followed.

Poverty, inequalities, lack of inclusivity and deprivation from basic necessities, including food and nutrition are among the problems adding to the culmination and scale of crises. Addressing these issues, which also have strong humanitarian dimensions, will have positive impacts on the peaceful resolution of conflicts.

The upcoming World Humanitarian Summit to be held in Istanbul in May could provide an opportunity to assess these matters as well as the coherence between humanitarian and development sectors in general.

Turkey identified food security as a priority area during its G20 Presidency last year, highlighting in particular the problem of food losses and waste.


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About 30% of food is lost or wasted; so this is an economic, social and environmental problem on the global scale.

The cost for producing food that is wasted or lost amounts to 1 trillion Dollars each year. If we could reduce food losses and waste to zero, it would give us additional food to feed around 2 billion people.

Besides, the carbon footprint of producing wasted and lost food is estimated to be 7% of global greenhouse gas emissions each year, a fact that adds to pressure on scarce water and land resources.

During its Presidency, Turkey organized the second ever meeting of G20 Agriculture Ministers in May 2015, where sustainable food systems were discussed and the importance of reducing food losses and waste were highlighted.

Subsequently, G20 Leaders adopted the “G20 Action Plan on Food Security and Sustainable Food Systems” during the Antalya Summit in November. Lastly, on December 2015, the “G20 Technical Platform on Food Loss and Waste” was launched in Rome.

In these endeavors, we had fruitful cooperation with relevant international organizations, particularly FAO. We are also happy to see that the Chinese Presidency continues the G20 food security agenda and will organize a G20 Agriculture Ministers meeting in 2016.

In conclusion, it is crucial for all of us to continue our efforts on this issue, as our world will need to face the challenge of global food security and nutrition for an expected population of nine billion by 2050. ■


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Brazil

Mr. President, let me thank you for the invitation for this informal meeting of the Security Council. I also thank the briefers for their presentations.

Peace, on the one hand, and food security, on the other, can be mutually reinforcing. The consequences of conflicts for food security, however, are much more direct and unequivocal. They encompass hunger, with long-lasting effects on children; and damage to agriculture production, livestock, rural assets and transport systems.

To some extent we would like to question the assumption that food insecurity generates conflict. As the examples mentioned today by Sarah Cliffe demonstrate, this is not necessarily the case. We also believe that social unrest is not under the purview of the Security Council. Social unrest can be peaceful and does not represent in itself a threat to international peace and security.

The greatest conflicts of our time, which are responsible for most of the current humanitarian crises, have more complex roots, such as disputes for political influence

and control over natural resources, military

build-up and rivalry, intolerance, or even

what the Greeks call “hubris”. Historically,

some of the most serious conflicts were

caused by well-fed societies.

Let us not forget that, in Syria, war has created

the unacceptable hunger crisis in Madaya, or

Deir er-Zor - not the other way around.

The real question the Security Council

should ask itself is not the role it can play

in promoting food security, but how can it

fulfill its mandate in preventing and solving

conflicts in a way that minimizes the terrible

consequences posed by war for food security.

Other important questions are how can

peace-building efforts take food security more

into consideration, at all stages; and how to

increase efforts to solve protracted crises,

which disrupt livelihoods and food systems.

The Framework for Action for Food Security

and Nutrition in Protracted Crises, which was

mentioned by previous speakers and adopted

by the Committee on World Food Security in

2015, is a important reference in this matter.


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In such an exercise, the Security Council should use a development approach, which, however, should not be equated with "having a mandate on development". Food security in itself, and development as a whole, is an issue for other principal organs of the United Nations: the General Assembly and ECOSOC, obviously including the work of the UN Development System and its agencies.

Brazil is deeply committed to ensure food security and nutrition, both domestically and through international cooperation, particularly south-south and triangular cooperation.

In the last years, my country has made important progress in increasing access to income and food, as well as in fighting extreme poverty. The right to adequate food was affirmed as a constitutional right in 2010, and we are proud to no longer figure in FAO’s Hunger Map. This achievement is the result of a systematic investment in cash transfers and policies on public sector

food procurement and social mobilization – policies that Professor Graziano helped to implement before he was elected to head the FAO.

I am glad to inform that Brazil, with the support of many other member states, tabled yesterday, at the General Assembly, a draft resolution to proclaim the Decade of Action on Nutrition (2016-2025).

As requested by the Rome Declaration of 2014, we will now have a platform, within the UN, to build synergy among all ongoing initiatives. FAO and WHO will coordinate the implementation of the Decade, in coordination with relevant UN agencies. I encourage member states, civil society and the private sector to join this collective effort.

At national and global levels, much more can be done to ensure food security and proper nutrition for all.

I commend FAO, as well as WFP and other relevant UN agencies, to turn this goal into reality. ■


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Sweden

Thank you Ambassador Gaspar Martins and Ambassador Oyarzun Marchesi. I would, first of all, like to congratulate the Missions of Angola and Spain for organising this event, and for putting the spotlight on such an important political issue. I would also like to thank Director-General Graziano da Silva for his intervention and his leadership as well as the two professors for their extremely interesting contributions.

I will be brief and only highlight two points.

My first point: Unfortunately we do not need to look far for real-life examples of the nexus between food security and hunger on the one side, and insecurity and conflict on the other. Right now, in the Horn of Africa region it is not only development progress and human lives that are under threat because of climate change, food insecurity and undernutrition, but also regional peace and stability. The El Nino phenomenon is already affecting more than 20 million people in the Horn of Africa, and soon it could rise to as many as 50 million people, as very clearly illustrated on page 11 in the excellent FAO booklet on Peace

and Food Security. We should not think about if we should invest in food security and development efforts or in peace – we should be smart and do all three at the same time, saving both resources and lives. There is already a wealth of knowledge about how to do this in practice. We should use these strategies more systematically in our work across all domains of our bilateral and multilateral work. In this connection, we were interested to hear about FAO’s new strategy on peacebuilding – would Mr Graziano da Silva be willing to present it to the UN Peacebuilding Commission? As the vice-chair of the PBC/OC we would certainly welcome that.

My second point is that the discussions we have had today once again underline the complex and interlinked security challenges of today. We need a comprehensive, inclusive and strategic approach to guide our security work, which looks at the root causes of conflicts and integrates efforts that can build sustainable peace and sustainable development at the same time. During Sweden's chairmanship of the UN Peacebuilding Commission, which ended


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a few months ago, this was the kind of approach and the kind of discussions we tried to promote. We need more of this thinking in the United Nations, not less, and this is why we really welcome today’s discussion. ■


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Kazakhstan

First of all, allow me to thank the Permanent Representatives of Angola and Spain for organizing today’s discussion which will contribute to a common understanding of global processes in food security.

Uneven economic development, extensive agricultural production, social and political instability in some countries and regions, as well as environmental degradation and climate change accelerated by human economic activities, are the reasons why food security still remains one of the most pressing global problems that requires an adequate response both domestically and internationally. Addressing food security and nutrition will also mean recognizing its cross-cutting issues, among others, such as effective and long-term land management systems, especially, for women, together with those of rural development, trade, health, employment, social protection, water, and biofuel energy vs food challenges.

Drought, flood, national, regional and global economic downturns and conflicts are the main factors that have exacerbated the problem of food production, distribution

and access. High rates of population growth and poverty have also played a part, within an already difficult environment of fragile ecosystems. Since 80% of the world’s population is rural, all measures must primarily be taken in the agricultural sector

Food insecurity is both a cause and a consequence of violence, contributing to a vicious cycle or “conflict trap”. Food security is critical for political stability. Food insecurity is linked to increased risk of democratic failure, weak political institutions, absence of rule of law, protests and rioting, communal violence and civil conflict. Violent conflicts, in turn, create food insecurity, malnutrition and – in some instances – famine.

Food price stabilization measures are important tools to prevent food prices from rising and causing unrest. Safety nets and job creations are critical instruments that can mitigate the effect of short-term spikes in food prices on food insecurity, helping to prevent violent conflict and contribute to long-term development and eliminate inequalities.


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International food assistance plays an important role both during conflicts and in the post-conflict recovery period. The United Nations, especially its flagship agency WFP and IFAD, other international organizations, aid development agencies, and NGOs are particularly important in these situations because of reduced government capacity to provide basic services in states experiencing conflicts. Funding of food and nutrition assistance in post-conflict situations is often problematic because it is phased out the most rapidly, leaving populations at risk and potentially reversing earlier gains in building peace. Transition, peace building, capacity building and the recovery of agriculture are long- term processes; progress is measured in decades, rather than in years. After decades of consistent gains in eradicating hunger, food insecurity is once again seen on the rise. This is because food is not given an important role in global processes. Sadly, recovery activities focusing on improving food access often come too late, last too short a time, are poorly funded and are too small in scale.

Kazakhstan covers an area the size of Western Europe, and up to 80% of its land is suitable for agriculture. In terms of arable land per capita (1.5 hectares), Kazakhstan ranks second in the world, and is among the world’s top ten food exporters. In addition, the new “Kazakhstan-Turkmenistan-Iran-Persian Gulf” railway will allow a five-fold increase in exports of Kazakh wheat that in the short term will significantly expand the reach of our

country's grain exports. As you can see, Kazakhstan has considerable potential for active involvement in the process of regional and global food security.

Food insecurity presents a serious threat for certain countries and regions, especially for Africa, the Middle East and some Asian countries. This is why Kazakhstan proposed to create the Islamic Organization for Food Security (IOFS) during its chair of OIC in 2011 and supported by OIC Member States. The OIC, uniting 57 countries of Asia and Africa, has become a perfect platform for developing this idea. The 7th Conference of Ministers of Agriculture of the OIC as well as the Inaugural session of the General Assembly of the Islamic Organization for Food Security (IOFS) will be held in Astana during 26–28 April 2016. IOFS, which is to be headquartered in Kazakhstan, aims to greatly increase food security providing expertise, conducting research and promoting knowledge on food security, as well as coordinating practical support and emergency response in times of crisis.

We stand ready to further develop global and regional cooperation in the field of food security and nutrition to promote peace and development. ■


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Palau

Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this discussion. We want to express our appreciation to the FAO Director-General and the two experts for the very informative briefings. Congratulations and gratitude to the Missions of Spain and Angola for convening this timely session to address the most pressing matter, of food security and its relationship to peace and security.

Palau has a highly developed system of traditional agriculture, based on multi-story mixed gardens. This agriculture system was and is highly productive and pest resilient. In our pre-contact past, this agriculture system fed a population that, anthropologists tell us, was five-times our current population. Unfortunately our situation today is very different and today we import almost 90% of our foods, rendering us most vulnerable to disruption of international transport and volatility of pricing systems. We are highly cognizant that our national food insecurity is a source of insecurity in many realms - health and economic insecurity and also in the matter of peace and security. In an uncertain world, we recognize the strategic importance of achieving a greater degree of food self-

sufficiency. This is a high priority in our national development strategy. In this regard, we recognize and acknowledge with gratitude the support that FAO has and continues to provide toward this end, as acknowledged by the distinguished Ambassador of Malaysia.

We wish to acknowledge the important links between our discussion in this conference room and those taking place next door, on the conservation and sustainable use of Biological Diversity Beyond National Jurisdictions. Healthy oceans are integral to the food security, not just of small islands but of mankind as a whole, a synergy underscored in the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development with its interlocking goals. In this context, we would specifically highlight goals: #2 addressing food security and nutrition, #3 addressing health, #13 addressing climate change, and #14 addressing oceans.

Earlier, we spoke about island traditions of multi-story mixed gardens. While these may be specific to island communities, we also wish to take this opportunity to underscore an underutilized food resource that is


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universal. A resource that addresses virtually

all of the Sustainable Development Goals.

This resource is breastmilk which, in our rush

toward modernization, is often overlooked

and undervalued but, if universally

harnessed, will advance all of the Sustainable

Development Goals - poverty alleviation,

food security and nutrition, health, education,

gender, water and sanitation, sustainable

production and consumption, climate

change and environment. In the context of

this discussion, we urge that the Security

Council adopt measures to insure that peace

and security humanitarian interventions include support of breastfeeding mothers, including support for re-lactation where this is appropriate.

For us it is important that our discussions take a balanced approach to embracing and promoting new technologies but at the same time, not losing sight of past practices which have served humankind well and, if nurtured, will continue to do so, far into the future. In this way we can progress with the past to build a peaceful and secure future for all. ■


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The Netherlands

Let me start by thanking Angola and Spain for organizing this meeting and the distinguished speakers for their valuable contributions.

The Kingdom of the Netherlands aligns itself with the statement made by the European Union.

In addition, I would like to emphasize the following in my national capacity.

(On Food Security, Nutrition and Peace)

Conflict, resource scarcity and undernourishment are closely correlated. These relations are complex and context specific, more insight is certainly needed. Yet, at the same time, there is evidence and urgency enough to focus on action. In that spirit, we should first be aware of the many practical solutions for food and nutrition security that are being implemented; and acknowledge that many of these already contribute to peace and stability.

The experience of the Netherlands can be a point in case here. The historic need in the Dutch polders to work together in water management, as well as in agriculture, led to a successful model of multi-stakeholder co-operation in the current Dutch water- and agrifood sectors. Rather than a concept, this is an action-driven approach, focused on resource management and co-operation in practice.

We believe, in all modesty, that this model has something to contribute in establishing stable, conflict-sensitive food systems, especially in situations of competing claims on natural resources; resources that are often already under pressure of over-use and climate change.

[The Netherlands efforts]

In line with SDG-2, the Netherlands efforts with regard to food and nutrition security focus on adequate nutrition for all, inclusive agricultural development and resilient food systems.


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The Netherlands

In implementation, a broad and integrated approach is taken. This implies linkages with many other SDGs, including SDG-16: peaceful and inclusive societies.

Regarding the latter, food and nutrition security is an integral part of our cooperation aiming at peace, justice and the rule of law, like for example in the Great Lakes Region and the Horn of Africa. In New York the Netherlands is chairing the Group of Friends on Food and Nutrition security to support this important agenda.

[Planetary Security Conference]

In order to stimulate further thinking, exchange, cooperation and action on the nexus between global peace and security, natural resources management, climate change and development, the Netherlands will host the second international conference on Planetary Security in The Hague, the Netherlands, in early December 2016.

[Closing]

Only through international cooperation, we can assure the combination of the world’s most basic needs: food and security. These needs are interlinked: without food security, there cannot be peace. To this end, the Kingdom of the Netherlands is committed to work with its partners worldwide for peace, justice, prosperity and development. ■


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First of all I want to thank Angola and Spain for summoning this meeting. I just want to say how pleased we are to see the FAO Director-General here with us.

All the speakers raised many examples applying to Africa. Obviously we’re very much interested in what was said about Africa. I recall that FAO and the Director-General himself, is one of the driving forces behind the initiative carried out by Brazil for a meeting of agricultural ministers of Africa and Brazil. I am very grateful to him for this.

Above all I want to pick up on some of the aspects of the conference: First. I woke up this morning and the first news I heard was about the death of two park rangers in the East of Congo killed by armed groups attracted by illegal fishing in one of the zones of the park. The armed group was also attracted by agriculture in the park and they seek to hold the population at ransom. The population tries to use the park’s fertile ground as a source of agriculture.

The second aspect I want the briefers to pick-up on is the issue of the importance of agricultural research in conflict situations. Let me explain. Often we see pressure on land. You have little pockets of peace while the rest of the area may be in conflict and so the population is drawn to these pockets of peace. Secondly, agriculture needs to be developed along with the cities: it is a matter not just of city management but also of the land surrounding a city. When you’ve got that kind of pressure you need to raise productivity hence the importance of agricultural research which I’d like the speakers to address.

I had an experience in Angola where the refugee population had come from neighbouring countries. The government made available to them an agricultural researcher who developed species which in a very short amount of time helped the population to become less dependent on public resources. So this is also an aspect that we need to expand on. I’d very much

African Union


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like here the opinions of the briefers in that regard. I am also very pleased by the fact that we highlighted the issue of partnerships. Partnerships not just with formal institutions but also we need to develop partnerships with civil society. Civil society has gained a lot of experience in this area.

The Chair of our session is Ambassador Ismael who will recall that at a given point there were a group of Argentinians who were ready to work with Guinea Bissau to develop agriculture for countries emerging from conflicts. So I think those partnerships are important. I’ve recently had a meeting with SOS Sahel. You know that although the Sahel is gravely affected by terrorism, action needs to be adapted to these kinds of regions and I think that civil society can play a role in this.

I also note with interest, the issue of climate change: I just want to come back on what I call the Lake Chad cycle. Lake Chad as we all know has dried up, or much of it has dried up, the result of which is that it has attracted farmers. Farmers are now entering into conflict with the local fishermen and lately that attracted the Boko Haram terrorists. The terrorists haven’t gone there to catch fish, they have gone there to hold to ransom the farmers and the fishermen who work around Lake Chad. As a result, certain governments have prohibited the fish coming from Lake Chad as a means of cutting-off the financing to the terrorists. At the same time, this clearly leads to other facts, so they solved one problem but this creates a new one based on the problem of food security to the region which is being fuelled by what is going on around Lake Chad.

The final aspect is the holding to ransom of farmers by armed groups. This is happening not just around Lake Chad, but even in the first case I cited, that of the park in the East of Congo. Armed groups are drawn there, holding the farmers who are working there to ransom. These are aspects that the Security Council and other international entities need to take a look at. Still on the subject of partnerships, I think the Council has already highlighted the fact that this has an impact on the ground, and see who really can do the work. FAO certainly has a role to play here but we’ve also followed with interest what was said by the Brazilian ambassador who also expanded on a couple of aspects the Security Council needs to address and other entities that are equipped to do so because obviously the Security Council is not properly equipped to be involved in the business of agriculture.

I’m very much pleased, Chair, by some of the observations made. I think the Arria Formula will renew the Security Council’s working methods. We should see how we could make the Arria Formula more appealing. We could perhaps keep its distance from the public debate but we all hear the Council members. Perhaps if we could have a more productive interaction not just with the briefers but with the non-members of the Council to make sure we don’t feel like the poor partners even in an Arria Formula speaking more interactively. ■


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World Food Programme (WFP)

It is a great pleasure for me to participate in this meeting today and share a few perspectives from the World Food Programme (WFP). This topic is critical for WFP given the intrinsic link between hunger, malnutrition and conflict.

The WFP Executive-Director has addressed the Security Council twice in the past year to provide an update on the situation in Syria. In her remarks, she noted that the longer the crisis continues, its victims become ever more vulnerable. This is true not only for Syria. When 80% of the world’s 795 million hungry live in fragile contexts, conflict robs them of finding sustainable solutions for their futures.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes this challenge. Leaving no one behind requires a deliberate effort to identify and reach those furthest behind first, to ensure that they too can achieve the full package of rights and opportunities enshrined in the new agenda.

This is a shared responsibility. It involves preventing and resolving conflicts and crises, meeting immediate relief needs, reducing risk, sustaining peace and building resilience – actions that the UN as a system is equipped to address.

The old mantra of “humanitarian relief to development” should now be replaced by “humanitarian relief and development” and augmented to include peace. This calls for a new approach – one that overcomes the silos that were created by mandates and financial structures and makes effective use of all available instruments, based on comparative strengths. This should be underpinned by shared risk and context analyses, which guide risk-informed and outcome-oriented plans and lead to longer-term commitments for contextualized and lasting solutions.

Recognizing this changing operating environment, WFP has developed policies to ensure its activities can reinforce peace


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World Food Programme (WFP)

where it is needed, in the context of UN-wide efforts.

For example, programmes that improve livelihoods have had an important impact in reducing existing tensions. In the Kyrgyz Republic ethnic tensions aggravated by socio-economic inequalities came to a head with rising food prices. Using a peacebuilding lens, and based on careful context analysis, WFP designed food-for-asset activities which brought together multi-ethnic residents to rehabilitate irrigation systems. This generated employment, addressed food shortages and increased small-farm production, which in turn eased tensions.

Smallholder farmers have a key role in promoting inclusive socio-economic growth. Yet often they are at the frontlines of food security and stability.

WFP’s Purchase for Progress programme supports smallholder farming by strengthening value chains and catalysing market development.

In Uganda on-farm storage technology and training has helped farmers store more produce and retain quality, strengthening their capacity to be commercially active. In Nepal support to the food monitoring system has helped the government respond to food price volatility in ways that contributed to state / society interaction and accountability.

Over the past five years, the Purchase for Progress programme has reached over one million smallholder farmers in 20 countries in similar ways, promoting community

development and empowering institutions – measures that are particularly important in volatile and conflict-prone settings.

This is an example of how the comparative advantage of one organization can be brought to bear to foster community growth and build social cohesion, contributing to broader peacebuilding strategies.

No part of the UN system is truly independent. Each relies on the other to perform its functions to be truly successful. The Agenda 2030 provides the collective vision for lasting peace and prosperity, and this year we have the opportunity to chart the way forward with the World Humanitarian Summit and the Summit on Migration. Addressing food security, nutrition and peace in an interconnected way is central to this endeavour. WFP looks forward to making its contribution. ■


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Food security,Nutritionand PeacePROCEEDINGS OF THEUNITED NATIONS SECURITYCOUNCIL MEETING


Documents

Food security, Nutrition and Peace · 6 Food security, nutrition and peace have multiple and complex linkages. ... The following briefers introduced the theme: • Mr. José Graziano